Tuesday, 28 May 2024 14:55

Time to bridge the digital gap between rural and urban - FAO

Written by  Staff Reporters
The director-general of the FAO says it's time to bridge the digital gap in rural areas. The director-general of the FAO says it's time to bridge the digital gap in rural areas.

The director-general of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) says the UN has a role to play in leveraging the power of digital technologies.

In an address to a High-Level United Nations Dialogue on the Progress and Future of Digital Cooperation, QU Dongyu noted that agriculture is one of the world’s biggest challenges, because digitally rural areas are lagging behind, adding that it is time to bridge the digital gap between urban and rural areas.

“Digitalisation is reshaping our world at its very core, and is having a deep impact on our societies and economies, and our mindsets,” he said, stressing that digitization may have a significant positive impact on agrifood systems transformation to make them more efficient, more inclusive, more resilient and more sustainable.

However, he pointed out that new emerging issues related to safe and ethical use of digital agriculture should be taken into consideration.

This is crucial “to ensure a holistic perspective and an open, free and secure digital future for all as outlined by the Global Digital Compact and other key UN led initiatives towards which we are working together”.

He reiterated FAO’s commitment to continue working closely with all stakeholders in an efficient, effective, and coherent manner to establish a global digital ecosystem to address global challenge.

The session was part of the UN’s World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) which brought together UN leaders to present their respective mandates within the WSIS process and their perspectives on digital for development.

More like this

FAO Food Price Index inches up

The benchmark for world food commodity prices increased for the third consecutive month in May, as higher prices of cereals and dairy products outweighed decreases in quotations for sugar and vegetable oils, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) reports.

Let's take our hats off to dairy farmers!

It’s World Milk Day today (June 1), a time to celebrate the vital role that milk, and dairy products play in our lives and acknowledge the tremendous contributions of the New Zealand dairy sector.

What's needed to improve rural connectivity?

With the copper network being phased out within the decade, New Zealand needs a long-term approach to ensure rural Kiwis aren't left behind when it comes to connectivity. Anna Mitchell, executive general manager of Fibre Frontier at Chorus, explains the potential of the right connectivity for the rural sector.

Featured

Langfords crowned Share Farmers of the Year

As the New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards night unfolded, it became evident that Waikato’s Thomas and Fiona Langford were the frontrunners for the biggest prize of the night – the 2025 Share Farmers of the Year award.

ANZCO Foods' net profit plunges

Meat processor ANZCO Foods’ net profit has plunged on the back of lower market returns which squeezed margins and impacted business performance.

Editorial: Forest for the trees?

OPINION: Most people will be aware of the Government's plans to boost coal, oil and gas production to meet energy requirements.

National

Machinery & Products

Iconic TPW Woolpress turns 50!

The company behind the iconic TPW Woolpress, which fundamentally changed the way wool is baled in Australia and New Zealand,…

» Latest Print Issues Online

The Hound

Keep it up

OPINION: The good fight against "banking wokery" continues with a draft bill to scrap the red tape forcing banks and…

We're OK!

OPINION: Despite the volatility created by the shoot-from-the-hip trade tariff 'stratefy' being deployed by the new state tenants in the…

» Connect with Rural News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter