Smart farming the next catalyst for agriculture
KUCHING: The time is ‘ripe’ for the state’s agriculture players to adopt modern technology along the industry’s supply and value chain in an effort towards modernisation.
This was the highlight of this year’s edition of the International Conference of Agriculture and Agro-based Sarawak 2018 (ICAAS 2018) with the theme “Transforming the Agriculture Sector Through Smart Farming.”
According to Deputy Chief Minister and Minister of Modernisation of Agriculture, Native Land and Regional Development of Sarawak Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas, the government strongly believes that industry players must be willing to shift their paradigm to adopt and adapt to new, modern and more effective processes and practces.
“The government is committed to equip our players with the latest technology and creating new competitive edges to ensure Sarawak can become the preferred destination for investors and venture capitalists.
“Towards this, ICAAS 2018 emphasises on presenting and deliberating on the field of knowledge areas in modern technology related to agriculture in line with the rapid changes that is happening around the world today,” he said in his welcoming remarks of the ICAAS 2018 opening yesterday.
Smart farming involves the integration of advanced technologies into farming practices in order to increase production efficiency and the quality of produce.
Every aspect of farming can benefit from technological advancements.
Moving forward from the first edition of ICAAS, Uggah said the state has steadily gained more and more private sector participation through commercialisation development proframmes.
Therefore, the Deputy Chief Minister said it was timely for players to embrace digital technology in order to reap the benefits of modern technology.
In this regard, the ministry has been given the responsiblity to lead and drive this transformation programme.
The conference aims to focus on knowledge sharing of best practices in agriculture and agro-based industries as well as exploring efffective agriculture delivery system. It is also meant to identify opportunities in the utilisation of digital technologies in order to leapfrog the development of sustainable and competitive agriculture.