Invitation to join remotely - Building a Framework for Digital Innovation in Agriculture (Session 278)

Dear e-Agriculture CoP member,

We are inviting interested individuals to join remotely to the Building a Framework for Digital Innovation in Agriculture, Session 278 at the WSIS Forum 2018 under the Action Line C7.

Any interested individuals are invited to participate.

This session is sponsored and facilated by the two UN Agencies The Food and Agriculture Organization and the International Telecommunication Union  

Details of the meeting 

Information note about this meeting 

The food and agricultural sector is going to face enormous challenges to feed the 9.6 billion people who will inhabit the planet by 2050, and food production must increase by 70% by 2050. Digital innovation, which means transforming ideas into value in a sustainable way, is key transforming the food and agriculture sector to address these challenges and achieve the SDGs in line with the WSIS Action Lines.

Innovative use of digital technologies contribute to improving livelihoods of farmers, increase nutrition and food security, reduce poverty, and provide solutions to better adapt and mitigate the effects of climate change on agriculture. In addition, innovation and ICTs help us to improve society productivity and to reach the most vulnerable.

Promoting the concept of innovation as transforming ideas into value also means building cross-industry multi-stakeholder partnerships and networks to explore, test and replicate new technologies, processes and capacity development for agriculture and food systems development.

Within the scope of the framework are initiatives like the WSIS, ITU-FAO co-organized regional and global Hackathons to promote competitions and projects to develop/prototype innovative applications and support the arising of start-ups and young developers and entrepreneurs. An example in FAO is the partnership with Google Earth Engine (GEE), leveraging Google's computing platform to run geospatial analysis. In partnership with one of the largest private telecommunication companies, Telefonica, FAO is piloting the use of remote sensing and the Internet of Things (IoT) for water productivity in agriculture. More information

The World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Forum 2018 represents the world's largest annual gathering of the ‘ICT for development’ community. The annual WSIS Forum is a global multi-stakeholder platform facilitating the implementation of the WSIS Action Lines for advancing sustainable development. The Forum provides an opportunity for information exchange, knowledge creation and sharing of best practices, while identifying emerging trends and fostering partnerships, taking into account the evolving Information and Knowledge Societies.