AgInfo News: Philippine government uses ICTs and knowledge management to boost agriculture

Four government agencies in the Philippines recently agreed to merge their knowledge resources through information and communication technology for the farming sector. The "Knowledge Networking Towards Enterprising Agricultural Communities" or K-AGRINET programme seeks to provide farmers, fisherfolk, extension workers, and agri-entrepreneurs in rural areas with ICT-enabling tools in acquiring information.

Partners in the programme are the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCARRD), the Department of Land Reform (DLR), the Development Academy of the Philippines (DAP), and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice).

K-AGRINET is designed as a single framework with 4 complementary initiatives:

The Open Academy for Philippine Agriculture project is led by PhilRice and focuses on e-extension and distance learning approach. It will package available agriculture-related information, data, and knowledge into Web-based information services.
The e-Consortia project led by PCARRD will intensify technology and knowledge generation and exchange among partner R&D institutions. It is tasked to take care of knowledge generation of the entire programme.
The e-Farm project also led by PCARRD will promote use of knowledge-based information and technology services in strategic areas of agriculture, forestry, and natural resources for micro, small, and medium enterprises.
The e-AGRIkultura project, led by DLR and DAP, seeks to touch base with end-users of technologies to create enterprising agricultural communities.