The Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA)

Background Report

on

e-Agriculture Policies and Strategies in ACP Countries

In preparation of the 2013 ICT Observatory

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

This background report reviews the general state of e-Agriculture policies and

strategiesi in selected ACP and non-ACP countries. It is a desk research that has

been developed in preparation for the 2013 ICT Observatory meeting and only aims

at providing a quick overview on the issue. The nature of the research and the limited

timeframe did not allow for a detailed analysis on the status e-Agriculture strategy

processes in the selected countries.

The report identifies some of the key challenges, target orientations, and key areas of

support for national e-Agriculture policies or strategies development as reported by

the various stakeholders. Consultations with stakeholders took place between

October and December 2012 mainly through Skype and phone calls, and

supplemented with email interviews and analysis of policy documents. Below is a

brief summary of the findings and recommendations (detailed findings and

recommendations of the study are presented in the body of the report).

I: SUMMARY OF FINDINGS

A) Overview of national e-Agriculture policies and strategies: The results show

that there are initiatives (at various stages) in a few countries to develop such

strategies or policies. However, the consultation reveals that in most ACP

countries, there were no interests or understanding of the need for e-Agriculture

strategies or policies even though the importance of ICT in agriculture is

generally recognized. Reports from some UN organisations such as ITU and

UNECA recognize few progress have been made on e-Agriculture strategies,

whereas e-strategies on other sectors such as governance and health do exist.

Below is the state of national e-Agriculture strategies or policies from countries

examined:

Ghana (Africa): The Ghana ICTs in Agriculture Implementation Strategy was

developed in 2005, certainly as a follow-up to ICT provisions in the 2003 National

ICT for Accelerated Development Policy document, and a draft report on

Implementation Strategy and Action Plans for Modernisation of Agriculture and

Development of Agro-Business Industry in Ghana was released in 2007 for

review and implementation. It was not clear during the study whether the plan

has actually been implemented and evaluated.

Ivory Coast (Africa): A recent development in Ivory Coast shows a joint effort by

the Ministry of Agriculture, and the Ministry of Post, Information Technology and

Communication to develop a national e-Agriculture policy. According to a press

release on the ministries website, a national strategy document for “e.Agriculture”

has been developed and is currently with the Council of State for approval.

Rwanda (Africa): Consultation with the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal

Resources (MAAR) in Rwanda revealed current efforts in formulating a national

strategy to integrate ICTs into agriculture and natural resource management

programs across the country. It is being described as a “Strategic Plan for

Agricultural Transformation” with key component on institutional development of

an agricultural knowledge and management system.

Mali and Burkina Faso: Through contacts made by CTA, it appears that UNECA

has been collaborating with these two countries to develop a cyber-strategy for

agriculture or rural development in 2011 (Note: Mali and Burkina Faso were not

part of the countries selected for the study).

Saint Lucia (Caribbean): In Saint Lucia, there is no evidence of efforts to

develop a national e-Agriculture policy or strategy. However, the study found that

the country’s national ICT policy document has recognised the role of ICTs in the

development of the agricultural sector, which is one of the pillars of its economy.

The St. Lucia’s Agricultural Resource Information System (SLARIS) therefore has

specific target areas for integration of ICTs into agriculture and rural

development.

Fiji (Pacific): No evidence was found in Fiji about the existence of a national e-

Agriculture policy or strategy. Analysis of the National IT Policy of Fiji shows no

mention of the agricultural sector. However, one of the goals of the 2011 National

Broadband Policy for the island is to develop lead applications in agriculture and

fisheries to assist in efficient production, marketing and logistics associated with

the primary industries including agriculture.

India (Asia): In India while it has not been specifically described as a national e-

Agriculture policy; there are efforts to create awareness about the need to

develop a “National Agricultural Informatics Framework”. Also, the country has a

national ICT policy within which agriculture is a key component; moreover, in the

national agriculture policy, the role of ICTs for extension and dissemination of

agricultural information is well recognised.

Bangladesh (Asia): Not much progress has been made in developing a national

e-Agriculture policy and a recent initiative between the private and public sectors

to develop a policy guideline for public-private interaction in the area of

agriculture information dissemination has been stalled due to political changes.

The proposed national ICT policy of the country, however, recognised the

importance of ICTs in agriculture and has devoted a comprehensive portion of it

to the agricultural sector. Also with the “Digital Bangladesh” agenda by the

current government, there is the hope for such initiative in the future.

Bolivia (Latin America): In addition to the above selected countries, the study

found that in Bolivia an “ICT Strategy for the Agriculture Sector” was developed

with support from IICD in 2002. But the current status of this document could not

be identified.

B) Issues and challenges: Below are some general experiences shared by

stakeholders that can inform future initiatives aimed at supporting ACP countries

in developing national e-Agriculture policies or strategies.

Policy ownership: Experiences in ICT policy and other sectoral policy

development show that national ownership is critical in the entire process. The

involvement of international organizations, if needed, should be limited, to

awareness creation, technical and financial support.

Multi-stakeholder partnership: The study found that multi-stakeholder

partnership involving the public sector, the private sector, civil society and

international organisations is needed for a successful policy development,

implementation, and monitoring. With respect to the national e-Agriculture

policies or strategies, a strong collaboration between the two key ministries – the

Ministry in charge of Agriculture and the one in charge of ICTs is critical at the

national level. A good collaboration between ICT-focused and agriculture-focused

international organisations (ITU, UNECA, FAO, CTA, IICD, etc.) is also needed

on this issue.

Other challenges recalled by the stakeholders include the general lack of

interest or understanding in e-Agriculture policies or strategies by many

stakeholders at the national level; the sheer lack of understanding of the role and

potential of ICTs in agriculture even at the senior official level; issues with

institutional and political structures; regulatory changes in the absence of formal

policies; poor collaboration between Ministries in charge of ICTs and agriculture;

among others. Other implementation challenges mentioned by the respondents

include power non-availability; poor ICT infrastructure; low ICT literacy; lack of

relevant content; non-integration of services; non-availability of advisory services;

issues of localisation of ICTs; and resource mobilisation.

C) Orientations and target areas: Respondents also identified some key target

areas expected to be covered in their national e-Agriculture policies. These

include local content, weather services, farm health management informatics,

infrastructure and equipment, universal access, training and capacity building,

postharvest management, forest management, general production system,

marketing and market research, commodity specific focus such as livestock,

crops fisheries, etc., water resource management, R&D, and risk management.

D) Expected areas of support: Among the few areas identified for support is

capacity building for national actors in the entire policy development process.

While some of the international organizations argued that the financial cost

should not be too much to exceed the capacity of the national governments,

national stakeholders did ask for support in terms of budget in the policy

development, implementation, and monitoring.

II: RECOMMENDATIONS FOR CTA AND ALLIED PARTNERS

The key recommendations made for CTA and other international organizations, to be

implemented in partnership when required, are introduced below.

Include discussion of the conclusion of this report and of the ICT

Observatory meeting in the WSIS forum in May 2013: It has been

acknowledged during the consultation that the issue of national e-Agriculture

policies and strategies transcends the boundaries of ACP countries. Since the

concept of e-sector policies emerged out of WSIS 2003-2005, a first target for

CTA could be to present the outcomes of this study and the stakeholder

consultation to be held later, for consideration by the global stakeholders at the

May 2013 WSIS forum.

Commission a more detailed case study: It is also recommended that a

broader survey study (this can include a formal survey covering most ACP

countries), and a more detailed analysis of on-going processes in a few countries

be undertaken.

Create a global level task force and national level committees: It is

recommended that a global level task force and national level committees be

created, in collaboration with other regional bodies within the ACP and

international institutions with interest in the sector. These new global and national

bodies shall consist of a network of policy experts from the agricultural and ICT

sectors and shall act as the backbone for developing, implementing and

evaluating the national e-Agriculture policies or strategies.

Build a national e-Agriculture policy toolkit: This toolkit can take the form of a

living and interactive database with various components of e-policy, to enable

countries to explore options based on their specific situation. Lessons and best

practices from other sectors such as health, education and governance shall be

utilised to understand the models, approaches, successes and failures, etc. in

these sectors, to prevent repetition of the same mistakes.

Awareness creation and monitoring of the policy process at national level:

Campaigning and awareness creation should be undertaken by relevant actors to

sensitise stakeholders about the importance of e-Agriculture policies. In the

process, more emphasis shall be directed at implementation and M&E stages

and senior government officials shall be involved from the outset, to ensure a

high level of political endorsement and a pledge for future implementation of the

policies.

Ensure local leadership in the entire process: CTA and allied institutions may

be responsible for raising awareness and providing guidance, but acting upon

these recommendations may rest on the national governments. In doing so,

national governments may be encouraged to allocate the responsibility for e-

Agriculture policy or strategy development to a specific directorate, such as the

Ministry of Agriculture, and then be guided by the national e-Agriculture policy

committee.

Factor in the why, which, how, and what questions of e-Agriculture: The

success of the national e-Agriculture policies or strategies program in ACP

countries will depend on the demand for ICTs by actors within the agricultural

value chain. This is very high at the moment across the regions. Therefore in

supporting ACP countries in e-Agriculture policy or strategy development, CTA

shall ensure the policies aim at addressing: why the stakeholders should use

ICTs; what kind of ICTs should be recommended for use; where should ICTs be

applied within the agricultural sector; and how should the ICTs be applied for

agriculture and rural development in these countries?

i The research aimed to identify the existence of e-agriculture strategy or policy documents or processes, irrespective of the difference between the two terms “policy” and “strategy”. This is the reason why either of the term is used in the report.