The global divide in data-driven farming

Big data and mobile technology are widely claimed to be global disruptive forces in agriculture that benefit small-scale farm-ers. Yet the access of small-scale farmers to this technology is poorly understood. We show that only 24–37% of farms of <1 ha in size are served by third generation (3G) or...

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Main Authors: Mehrabi, Zia, McDowell, Mollie J., Ricciardi, Vincent, Levers, Christian, Martínez, Juan Diego, Mehrabi, Natascha, Wittman, Hannah, Ramankutty, Navin, Jarvis, Andy
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: Springer 2020
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/110091
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author Mehrabi, Zia
McDowell, Mollie J.
Ricciardi, Vincent
Levers, Christian
Martínez, Juan Diego
Mehrabi, Natascha
Wittman, Hannah
Ramankutty, Navin
Jarvis, Andy
author_browse Jarvis, Andy
Levers, Christian
Martínez, Juan Diego
McDowell, Mollie J.
Mehrabi, Natascha
Mehrabi, Zia
Ramankutty, Navin
Ricciardi, Vincent
Wittman, Hannah
author_facet Mehrabi, Zia
McDowell, Mollie J.
Ricciardi, Vincent
Levers, Christian
Martínez, Juan Diego
Mehrabi, Natascha
Wittman, Hannah
Ramankutty, Navin
Jarvis, Andy
author_sort Mehrabi, Zia
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Big data and mobile technology are widely claimed to be global disruptive forces in agriculture that benefit small-scale farm-ers. Yet the access of small-scale farmers to this technology is poorly understood. We show that only 24–37% of farms of <1 ha in size are served by third generation (3G) or 4G services, compared to 74–80% of farms of >200 ha in size. Furthermore, croplands with severe yield gaps, climate-stressed locations and food-insecure populations have poor service coverage. Across many countries in Africa, less than ~40% of farming households have Internet access, and the cost of data remains prohibitive. We recommend a digital inclusion agenda whereby governments, the development community and the private sector focus their efforts to improve access so that data-driven agriculture is available to all farmers globally.
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spelling CGSpace1100912025-11-11T17:46:43Z The global divide in data-driven farming Mehrabi, Zia McDowell, Mollie J. Ricciardi, Vincent Levers, Christian Martínez, Juan Diego Mehrabi, Natascha Wittman, Hannah Ramankutty, Navin Jarvis, Andy data telecommunications internet information technology agriculture access to information costs smallholders food security Big data and mobile technology are widely claimed to be global disruptive forces in agriculture that benefit small-scale farm-ers. Yet the access of small-scale farmers to this technology is poorly understood. We show that only 24–37% of farms of <1 ha in size are served by third generation (3G) or 4G services, compared to 74–80% of farms of >200 ha in size. Furthermore, croplands with severe yield gaps, climate-stressed locations and food-insecure populations have poor service coverage. Across many countries in Africa, less than ~40% of farming households have Internet access, and the cost of data remains prohibitive. We recommend a digital inclusion agenda whereby governments, the development community and the private sector focus their efforts to improve access so that data-driven agriculture is available to all farmers globally. 2020-11-02 2020-11-09T13:20:22Z 2020-11-09T13:20:22Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/110091 en Open Access application/pdf Springer Mehrabi, Z.; McDowell, M.J.; Ricciardi, V.; Levers, C.; Martinez, J.D.; Mehrabi, N.; Wittman, H.; Ramankutty, N.; Jarvis, A. (2020) The global divide in data-driven farming. Nature Sustainability, Online first paper (02 November 2020) ISSN: 2398-9629
spellingShingle data
telecommunications
internet
information technology
agriculture
access to information
costs
smallholders
food security
Mehrabi, Zia
McDowell, Mollie J.
Ricciardi, Vincent
Levers, Christian
Martínez, Juan Diego
Mehrabi, Natascha
Wittman, Hannah
Ramankutty, Navin
Jarvis, Andy
The global divide in data-driven farming
title The global divide in data-driven farming
title_full The global divide in data-driven farming
title_fullStr The global divide in data-driven farming
title_full_unstemmed The global divide in data-driven farming
title_short The global divide in data-driven farming
title_sort global divide in data driven farming
topic data
telecommunications
internet
information technology
agriculture
access to information
costs
smallholders
food security
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/110091
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