DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES IN AGRICULTURE AND RURAL AREAS STATUS REPORT DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES IN AGRICULTURE AND RURAL AREAS STATUS REPORT by Nikola M. Trendov, Samuel Varas, and Meng Zeng Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Rome, 2019 Required citation: Trendov, N. M., Varas, S. & Zeng, M. 2019. Digital technologies in agriculture and rural areas – Status report. Rome. Licence: cc by-nc-sa 3.0 igo. The designations employed and the presentation of material in this information product do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) concerning the legal or development status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. 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CONTENTS 1 INTRODUCTION . 1 1.1 The digital agriculture ...................................................................2 1.2 The framework ..........................................................................3 1.2.1 Focus on SDGs .............................................................................3 1.2.2 Resources ...................................................................................4 1.2.3 Setting all together .........................................................................4 1.3 The document ...........................................................................5 2 BASIC CONDITION FOR DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION . 7 2.1 IT infrastructure and network in rural areas ..............................................7 2.1.1 Connectivity: mobile subscription and the access to broadband infrastructure .............8 2.1.2 Affordability: costs of ICT tools as a precondition for adoption by rural population .........18 2.1.3 Conclusion .................................................................................20 2.2 Educational attainment, digital literacy and employment among rural communities ..22 2.2.1 Literacy rate and the gap between urban and rural areas ..................................22 2.2.2 Introduction of ICTs to the educational process ............................................26 2.2.3 Employment in the rural areas and agrifood sector ........................................34 2.2.4 Conclusion .................................................................................37 2.3 Policies and programmes for enabling digital agriculture ..............................37 2.3.1 Institutional support and mechanisms ....................................................37 2.3.2 Policy regulation and frameworks .........................................................48 2.3.3 Existing digital agriculture strategies .......................................................51 2.3.4 Conclusion .................................................................................52 3 ENABLERS FOR DIGITAL AGRICULTURE TRANSFORMATION . 53 3.1 Use of digital technologies among rural population and farmers .......................53 3.1.1 Internet use and gender gap ..............................................................55 3.1.2 Internet use and youth .....................................................................56 3.1.3 Mobile use, social media and networks ....................................................58 3.1.4 Mobile apps, social media and networks among agriculture stakeholders .................65 3.1.5 ICTs for agricultural extension and advisory services .......................................68 3.1.6 Purpose of farmers using ICT tools .........................................................69 3.1.7 Use of precision agriculture technologies .................................................70 3.1.8 Conclusion .................................................................................72 3.2 Digital skills among rural population ...................................................73 3.2.1 Global trend on digital skills ...............................................................73 3.2.2 Digital skills gap between urban and rural areas ...........................................76 3.2.3 Conclusion .................................................................................77 3.3 Digital agripreneurial and innovation culture ...........................................77 3.3.1 Global trends in agritech entrepreneurship ...............................................79 3.3.2 Investment in digital agriculture ..........................................................80 3.3.3 Digital innovation ecosystem ..............................................................83 3.3.4 Conclusion .................................................................................90 iii 4 IMPACT OF DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES ON THE AGRIFOOD SYSTEM – CASE STUDY EVIDENCE. 93 4.1 Production .............................................................................94 4.1.1 Mobile devices and social media ..........................................................94 4.1.2 Precision agriculture and IoT technologies .................................................99 4.1.3 Big Data, cloud and analytics and cybersecurity ..........................................108 4.1.4 Integration and coordination (blockchain, global ERP, financing and insurance systems) ..111 4.1.5 Intelligent systems .........................................................................114 4.2 Logistic .................................................................................121 5 CONCLUSION AND FUTURE WORK . 125 5.1 Boosting enablers to connect marginalized and remote communities ................126 5.2 Drivers and demands for unlocking digital agriculture transformation ................ 127 5.3 Impact, risks and benefits in the process of agriculture digitalization ..................128 5.4 Future work ...........................................................................129 6 REFERENCES . 131 ENDNOTES . 139 iv Figures Figure 2-1 Global mobile-cellular subscription per 100 inhabitants, 2016. .....................................9 Figure 2-2 Subscriber penetration and smartphone adoption (percent) by region, 2018. ................... 10 Figure 2-3 Global smartphone penetration (percent of population), 2018. ................................... 10 Figure 2-4 Global 3G coverage (percent of population), 2016 ..................................................11 Figure 2-5 Percentage of 2G, 3G and 4G coverage by region, 2018. ............................................12 Figure 2-6 Global active mobile-broadband subscription per 100 inhabitants, 2018.. 13 Figure 2-7 Global LTE/WiMAX (worldwide interoperability for microwave access) coverage (percent population), 2016. ....................................................................................14 Figure 2-8 Percentage of households with Internet access, 2016. .............................................15 Figure 2-9 Internet access in rural/urban areas for