Vietnamese farmers are keenly interested in digitization

A survey conducted by CropLife Asia in four ASEAN countries shows that Vietnamese farmers' interest in digitization is at a much higher rate than the rest.

Vietnamese farmers are more interested in digitization than other countries in the region. Photo: TL.

According to a survey recently published by CropLife Asia, in comparison to the three ASEAN countries in the same survey, Vietnam has the highest percentage of farmers who want to apply digitalization in agriculture.

CropLife stated that this is a great opportunity for partners in the agriculture-food production chain to continue cooperating, promote testing activities for new technology applications; implement training programs for farmers to understand and use the technologies effectively, safely and sustainably with the goal of securing more opportunities to gain access as well as increasing the rate of technology application in practical farming.

Over the years, CropLife and its member companies have cooperated with the Government and domestic management agencies to propose and support farmers to apply scientific solutions in agriculture. At the same time, the association and its members are constantly innovating and introducing advanced plant protection products and solutions as well as conducting training courses so that farmers can utilize those products responsibly.

Moreover, CropLife Vietnam has been working closely with the Plant Protection Department (MARD) to complete the online database of plant protection products together with online search applications that help farmers easily search, identify products and have instructions for using products on specific crops.

Since 2019, CropLife's member companies have also been pioneers in deploying experimental models using drones to spray pesticides on crops. Drone/UAV technology integrates many techniques such as mapping, monitoring crop growth and problems relating to the crops, spraying operation, monitoring irrigation activities along livestock grazing.

From the initial results, through trial models on rice and some fruit trees, the application of drones to spray pesticides in Vietnam has shown outstanding advantages: reduce labor; reduce spraying time, reduce water use and especially reduce the time of direct contact with pesticides during preparation and spraying while still ensure efficiency, coverage and high crop protection level.

The results of these models will serve as an important foundation to help the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development develop technical procedures and safety standards for the operation of drones in pesticide spraying in Vietnam, and soon put this technology into practice.

At the seminar with the topic "Improving the Ecosystem for Vietnam's Agriculture Digital Transformation", Dr. Tan Siang Hee, representative of CropLife, shared: A sustainable agricultural ecosystem is always associated with the responsible application of advanced agricultural solutions. Operating a clear, science-based policy system, absorbing international research and data are resolute conditions for the development and transformation of Vietnam's agriculture towards digitization and sustainability.

In the strategy of developing a smart and sustainable agricultural ecosystem, farmers always play a central role. Accordingly, they need to be timely and fully equipped with all available technologies, knowledge on operation, and use them responsibly. Only when farmers truly understand the benefits of technology can they master and maximize their benefits.