Guyana’s first ever agriculture database system launched
A section of the gathering at the AIS launch (DPI photo)
Kaieteur News – Improving its data and record keeping of the agriculture sector through the use of technology, the Ministry of Agriculture on Monday launched the country’s first ever Agriculture Information System (AIS).
General Manager of the Country Department of the Caribbean at the IDB, Anton Edmunds (DPI photo)
Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha speaking at the launch of the AIS on Monday
The project which was launched at the Arthur Chung Conference Center was designed and created through a US$15 million loan from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) under the Sustainable Agricultural Development Programme (SADP).
The system which was developed by IntellectStorm is set to serve as centralised hub for the Agriculture Ministry in allowing the agency to collect, analyse and share agriculture data from across Guyana in real time.
Speaking of the development of this system, Director of Planning at the Ministry, Mrs. Natasha Beerjit-Deonarine said that in pursuit of delivering best services, the ministry has embraced innovation and technology to modernise their systems and management practices. To this end they had implemented several initiatives to improve service quality and building better data systems. She noted that these systems will empower policymakers, management and extension officers to make informed evidence–based decisions in the sector.
“For far too long, Guyana’s agriculture sector has faced challenges due to the fragmented data and outdated system, however, with the launch of the AIS we are overcoming these obstacles. Today, we gather to launch a tool that will enhance governance processes, enabling our officers especially our extension officers to operate more competently in this digital environment,” she said.
The director informed that when fully operational, the AIS will give a clear and accurate picture of the country’s agriculture sector. Expounding on what the AIS entails, she explained that it has farm register module that will create a comprehensive database of farmers including unique identifiers, contact information, georeferencing of the farm and production details. There is an extension module that will record farm visits, production information and will include a farm profile.
Further, it has a survey module and this will enable the creation and processing of customised surveys which has been a module the ministry used to collect farm data previously. “For now, the AIS will primarily serve internal purposes, integrating the workload of the different agencies into a single platform, so instead of having GLDA having their own data base, GRDB or NAREI, it will all be on one platform. So this will help us to better serve our farmers, the extension officers, even the media personnel will be able to get more time bound information,” she briefed.
In his feature address, Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha said that the development of the AIS is important because now it would help the ministry to plan effectively moving forward, and that it will drive efficiency, boost productivity and cement Guyana’s position as a leader in agriculture and digitalisation in the Caribbean.
“We are launching a AIS where we are hoping that will help us to plan and plan effectively. All of us who are in the agriculture sector will know that we have had a number of issues in relation to data collection, so much so that when we had the devastating flood, we had a number of issues to identify the beneficiary,” he explained.
According to the minister, this system will help to provide data for them to identify who are in the livestock industry, in cash-crop fruits and vegetables, in the rice sector and who are in the fishing sector. He further said the that implementation of the system all forms part of the modernisation of the agriculture sector that they are building.
The minister shared that the Agriculture Information System is not a standalone project, it will be strategically complemented by AIS hubs which will be located in eight of the ten administrative regions. “These hubs will serve as collaborative spaces for extension officers, fully equipped with modern office facilities, internet and computer, extension officers will be equipped with tablets so that we can have real time data,” he mentioned.
Noting that the ministry has commenced training with the extension officers in using this new system, the minister told the officers that the AIS will help guide them to help the farmers to be more efficient, to help the farmers to ensure that they cultivate crops that will be beneficial to themselves which will improve their livelihood and at the same time bring benefit into the country.
In his remarks, IDB’s General Manager of the Caribbean Country Department, Anton Edmunds said that the launch of this initiative highlights the promising trajectory of Guyana’s agriculture sector towards modernisation, increase productivity and sustainable development.
“Agriculture in Guyana is poised for transformation, implementation of the AIS is more crucial than ever as agriculture data is essential to the effective planning and evaluation, more importantly for agriculture strategies and programs and projects,” he said.
According to the General Manager, the lack of data is one of the biggest issues facing the Caribbean region and “the ability for us to have data and collect it in real time is really and truly crucial for the future of the industry.” He added that the implementation of the system will enhance the ability to make informed decisions that can drive growth and sustainability in the sector.
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