The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) recently held the workshop “Exchange of experiences in digitisation and connectivity in rural areas in Latin America and the Caribbean”, which brought together technical profiles of FAO and governments that support the implementation of digital pilots in Argentina, Barbados, Chile, Costa Rica, Cuba, Guyana, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, Suriname, Trinidad, and Tobago and Uruguay.
The event, which took place in Santiago, Chile, was held within the framework of the South-South Cooperation project: Digital transformation and innovation in agriculture, promoted by FAO and the People’s Republic of China to contribute to the recovery of rural livelihoods through the use of digital solutions in countries that are part of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC).
For two days, the guests discussed the digitisation of agriculture and rural areas. They also presented the objectives and progress of the initiatives they are developing with public institutions and other organisations developing rural digitisation plans and discussed future challenges to ensure their projects’ successful implementation and long-term sustainability.
At the inauguration, FAO’s Regional Program Leader for Latin America and the Caribbean, Maya Takagi, appreciated the importance of creating partnerships and emphasised that cooperation between FAO and China “is essential to advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)”.
Senior Policy Officer, Luiz Beduschi, thanked the government officials for their presence and said: “There is no doubt that the digitalisation of rural areas is a priority if we want to transform and revitalise family agriculture towards a more sustainable and inclusive economy.”
Program Officer for South-South and Triangular Cooperation, Jiang Jiang, acknowledged the strong commitment and support of the People’s Republic of China to this project and highlighted CELAC’s vision to move towards innovative solutions to recover from the pandemic.
“We hope that the new tools, solutions, and practices provided by this project will improve the lives of many rural communities in the CELAC countries and generate new ideas, new approaches, and modalities of South-South and Triangular Cooperation,” the Program Officer stated.
The recommendations and conclusions of this meeting are a valuable contribution to guide the work of the South-South Cooperation Project: Digital Transformation and Innovation in Agriculture to promote connectivity and digital solutions in rural areas.