West Java Province is Leading the Way to Innovative Agriculture Digitalization in Indonesia’s Villages

JAKARTADAILY.ID – Digitalization of agriculture is one of the opportunities to transform the agri-food system in Indonesia. As a country with nearly 50% population living in rural areas as small farmers and fishers, reaping benefits out of agriculture using digital technology can become instrumental for the smallholders.

The food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) launched the Digital Village Initiative (DVI) in 2021 to promote digitalization in rural areas for the benefit of the local population. In 2022, Indonesia together with other 13 countries in the Asia-Pacific region, agreed on the DVI assessment.

FAO, with the support of the Bogor Institute of Agriculture (IPB), surveyed 132 villages in Indonesia to assess the level of digital innovation including the development of digital technology, and the level of adoption to determine the maturity of digital innovation in these villages. During the assessment, West Java was realized to be one of the most progressive provinces with many villages applying digital innovation.

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“Several villages in West Java were assessed to be implementing digital innovation technology. Various activities, such as smart farming, smart fisheries, smart livestock, and many more were observed in these villages”, said “Rajendra Aryal, FAO Representative in Indonesia and Timor Leste at the workshop organized in Bandung to present the results of the assessment study.

“Level of digital maturity varies from pilot to commercialized stages. With the baseline developed with technical support from FAO, we are hopeful that this work on digital innovation will continue in close collaboration with the government and other relevant stakeholders since is extremely crucial to harness the potentials of these villages”, Aryal added further.

Arif Satria, Rector of IPB emphasized that government regulation is crucial for the continuation and expansion of the Digital Village Innovation program in Indonesia.

“Digital Village Development can take place very quickly, however, this needs to be supported by favorable regulation and good infrastructure. I hope that all the relevant stakeholders will work closely together for the digital villages development in Indonesia”, added Arief further.

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West Java villages Digital Innovation

Digital innovation in the West Java villages represents various agricultural sectors, including infrastructure development, financial services, social services, agri-food marketing and e-commerce, smart farming, smart livestock development, information systems management, e-governance, and community and economic development.

Among others, e-fishery has been implemented in Puntang, Soge, and Krimun Villages in Indramayu. Similarly, smart agriculture has been implemented in Habibie Garden and Alam Endah villages in Bandung district, and Papayan village in Tasikmalaya.

The assessment has also realized that e-governance is the most common type of innovation in the villages, followed by community and economics, smart farming, information systems, agrifood marketing, e-commerce, social service, financial service, and local infrastructure development.

FAO has developed a platform called “1000 Digital Villages” in the Asia-Pacific region as a place to share the experience and provide technical support for digital innovation. FAO’s Digital Village Initiative (DVI), as a flagship program, supports inclusive and gender-sensitive rural development and sustainable agri-food systems transformation to meet SDG goals.

FAO DVI follows a country-led, user-centered, and holistic digital ecosystem approach for digital village development allowing local contexts to dictate the modalities pursued. (***)

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