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Rurbanomics: The path to rural revitalization in Africa
This post first appeared on the D+C Development and Cooperation site and IFPRI.org.
The deadlines to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris climate goals draw ever closer. The ambitious imperative of the SDGs is to “leave no one behind.” The implication is that we must urgently revitalize rural areas, especially in Africa south of the Sahara. Now is the time for a dramatic, system-wide transformation to make rural areas more productive, more sustainable, more climate-resilient, healthier and more attractive places to live.
Scaling Up ICTs for Agriculture
Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have vast potential for improving agriculture and food security and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). ICTs can contribute to agriculture in a variety of ways, from helping farmers get fair prices for their produce to increasing agricultural yields.
ICTs for Agriculture: Way Forward
Last week, a panel of global and regional experts joined the Africa south of the Sahara Food Security Portal for a virtual dialogue on ICT use in African agriculture . The dialogue centered on four main discussion questions:
Virtual Dialogue: ICTs in African Agriculture (Summary coming soon)
Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) - including mobile phones, audio-visual communication, digital technologies, and internet services - have played a significant role in development in Africa south of the Sahara over the past decade. The potential benefits of ICTs for the region’s agricultural sector, and its poor farming households, are especially important, as Africa south of the Sahara has the lowest rates of agricultural productivity and the highest rates of hunger in the world.
ICTs in African Agriculture
Over the past decade, both the scale of and the access to Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) - including mobile phones, audio-visual communication, digital technologies, and internet services - have grown considerably in Africa south of the Sahara. The potential benefits of ICTs for the region’s agricultural sector, and its poor farming households, are especially important, as Africa south of the Sahara has the lowest rates of agricultural productivity and the highest rates of undernutrition in the world.