RiceAdvice app in the spotlight at AGRF 2019 exhibition
RiceAdvice – a science-backed decision support tool that provides farm-specific advice on rice management practices in Africa – drew the attention of visitors to the booth showcasing technologies promoted under the program “Putting Research into Use for Nutrition, Sustainable Agriculture and Resilience (PRUNSAR),” at the African Green Revolution Forum (AGRF) 2019, 3-6 September, in Accra, Ghana.
The use of RiceAdvice, which is a free Android app developed by AfricaRice, increases yield by 0.5-1 per hectare and brings a profit margin increase of US$100-200 per ha per growing season. It has been piloted in 13 African countries and has reached about 30,000 rice farmers. Potential beneficiaries are expected to be at least 3 million households in Africa.
The tool was showcased as part of the technologies that are being promoted by AfricaRice and its partners in Nigeria, Rwanda and Senegal through PRUNSAR, which is co-funded by the European Union and IFAD. The overall aim of the project carried out by AfricaRice is to sustainably intensify rice-based farming systems, while minimizing their environmental footprint and adapting them to climate change.
More than 2,000 high-level dignitaries and representatives of development institutions, international organizations, tech leaders, agri-preneurs, farmer associations and non-governmental organizations, among others, participated at AGRF 2019, which was organized under the theme “Grow digital: Leveraging digital transformation to drive sustainable food systems in Africa.”
A major highlight of the AGRF was the Presidential Summit – a high-level panel led by the President of Ghana, H.E. Nana Akufo-Addo. The leaders discussed what various governments are doing in the area of agriculture digitalization, including digital infrastructure and digital policies.
As part of the agenda on ‘Advancing the Continental Agenda – Partners Commitments’ within the Presidential Summit, Dr. Elwyn Grainger-Jones, Executive Director, CGIAR System Organisation, spoke on CGIAR’s involvement in agricultural research for development in Africa and its capacity to respond to the continent’s development challenges. He highlighted that by adopting the Nerica rice varieties, 8 million people were lifted out of poverty in 16 African countries and about 7.2 million people are no longer food-insecure.
Scenes from AGRF 2019 https://bit.ly/2kukSUp
Dr Elwyn Grainger-Jones, Executive Director, CGIAR System Organisation speaking at the Plenary - Presidential Summit, Advancing the continental agenda - Partners Commitments, African Green Revolution Forum 2019 (AGRF 2019), 3-6 September 2019, Accra, Ghana.
Video: https://youtu.be/uI7Qo1nVRwg Audio podcast: https://bit.ly/2lAwIMS
Related link: PRUNSAR brochure in English
RiceAdvice website : https://www.riceadvice.info/en/
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