Farm households to benefit from the IT-upgrade of Techno Pinoy centers

Some 58,000 farm households nationwide stand to benefit from P100 million-worth of enhanced information and technology (IT) services in agriculture and natural resources of over a hundred Techno Pinoy centers this year.

Now totaling 179 and formally known as the Farmers’ Information and Technology Service (FITS) centers, these are the brainchild of PCARRD-Department of Science and Technology (DOST).

The Council is in charge of this FITS-enhancing project, which was pushed by Director General Romulo L. Neri of the National Economic and Development Authority.

“Based on our initial assessment, these FITS centers are making a difference in the regions in terms of crop productivity and increased farmers’ incomes and we are bent on improving them further with this project,” stressed PCARRD-DOST Executive Director Patricio S. Faylon.

The centerpiece of this enhancement project is the buildup of the centers’ information and communications technology (ICT) as well as information, education, and communication strategies. Moreover, the centers’ staff, local extension agents, and the farmer-scientists (magsasaka-siyentista), the farmer-to-farmer point persons in these centers, will be trained to handle the IT-based information access to technologies and services.

The value-adding services include product analysis and testing, product packaging and labeling, food safety and food handling, climate and hazard information services, online marketing and other need-based services that will support the development of the focus commodities and products.

"With the linkage among knowledge generators, knowledge networks, and rural communities strengthened through connectivity, capability building, content, and value-adding services, Filipino farmers will improve their productivity and competitiveness,” said Dr. Faylon.

Focus commodities and products
Part of the groundwork was to identify the priority industries and commodities, including their products, to be promoted by these centers. Focusing on products will provide the farmers greater enterprise opportunities along the specific supply chain.

Considering the market potential and comparative advantage, local government development plan, and availability of technologies, majority identified fruit crops (banana, mango, papaya, durian, and citrus/calamansi), industrial crops (coconut, abaca), grains (rice and corn), and vegetables as their focused commodities.

Some centers will also be promoting information and technologies on livestock and poultry, forestry, fisheries, and processing technologies.

Aggie information at one’s fingertips
Direct beneficiaries of some 116 package of technologies and databases on these priorities are 2,320 farmers and small entrepreneurs in the countryside.

Local government units, young farmers, and graduating agricultural students will also be encouraged to make use of the centers’ enhanced knowledge bank.

A short messaging service, where farmers and other clients can seek information on agriculture through texting, is being completed and will soon be made available.

Online marketing for farmers
Through a minimum acceptable level of connectivity, the centers will allow their clients to access information and participate in e-commerce or online marketing through the Internet.

PCARRD-DOST will soon sign a memorandum of agreement with the Land Bank of the Philippines and b2bpricenow.com, Inc. to promote e-commerce in the rural
areas through the ICT-enabled FITS centers and their partner-cooperatives.

For this project PCARRD-DOST is banking on its partnerships with the 14 regional R&D consortia and the LGUs, which are mostly hosting the Techno Pinoy centers. The LGUs are using part of their internal resource allocations to establish and maintain the centers. (Eileen C. Cardona, S&T Media Service)