While digital technology has revolutionized almost every workplace, small-scale farmers in developing countries are being left behind. Even where digital agriculture tools exist, they can be very complex to install and operate and often require memberships that are too expensive for small-scale producers. This is the result of a top-down approach that fails to offer the information and services that farmers need.

However, when designed with the needs and contexts of rural people in mind, digital tools can be a gamechanger for both small-scale farmers and sustainable food systems as a whole. One of the key principles of agroecology, co-creation, is at the core of the EU-funded Agroecological Transitions programme. Under this programme, IFAD together with the Alliance of Bioversity and CIAT, IRRIand Solidaridad Latinoamerica are testing the use of digital tools to transform food systems for a more sustainable, agroecological future.

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