Harnessing AI for Digital Extension Services

16 April 2024. Harnessing AI for Digital Extension Services

• Global Forum for Rural Advisory Services (GFRAS) in partnership with the Southern Africa Agri Initiative (SAAI), FANRPAN and AiFarmer
• Discover how advancements in artificial intelligence are revolutionizing digitalization efforts within the agricultural sector, unlocking new opportunities for enhanced advisory services and knowledge dissemination.
• Gain valuable insights into leveraging AI technologies for sustainable agricultural development and improved livelihoods.

Recording forthcoming

Francois Rossouw Southern African Agricultural Initiative (SAAI) University of Pretoria/Universiteit van Pretoria 

• He referred the article: CGIAR (2023) Large language models and agricultural extension services

André Strauss, CEO of CohesionX the developers of AELA's AI Farmer technology. (Agricultural Extension Language Assistant)

• AI Farmer, AELA’s flagship application, represents a significant leap forward in agricultural extension services. Traditional extension programs, while foundational, have faced challenges such as limited reach, especially in remote areas, language barriers, and a one-size-fits-all approach that often fails to address the specific needs of individual farmers. 
• AI Farmer is designed to overcome these hurdles by providing personalized, accessible, and
  
  
  actionable agricultural advice through advanced AI technology.

Archana Karanam, an ICT for ARD professional and has been a vital part of Digital Green since 2009

Some key takeaways from the meeting include:

- AI can help address challenges in agricultural extension like limited access, language barriers, limited time/resources for farmers, and more by providing on-demand advice to farmers.

- Both PSI and Digital Green are working on AI platforms to deliver personalized advice to farmers through chatbots and mobile apps. They curate agricultural data and train AI models to answer farmers' questions.

- It's important to have human experts involved to ensure AI responses are accurate, unbiased, and address local farming conditions. Feedback mechanisms also help improve AI over time.

- Value chain actors beyond just producers could potentially benefit from AI extension platforms, though more work may be needed to apply them throughout supply chains.

- Localization of AI systems, including supporting many languages and addressing local terminology, is an ongoing challenge but critical for adoption.

See Otter chat