This research aims to assess the Philippine policy and institutional landscape for digital agriextension services and the underlying mechanisms that support or constrain the digital inclusion of Filipino smallholder farmers. Using a two-phase documentary and policy analysis of academic literature, government policies, institutional reports, and related sources, the study examines both the institutional foundations and broader state narratives underpinning agricultural digitalization in the Philippines. Grounded in this political-institutional landscape, the study then articulates state-led imaginaries of inclusive agricultural digitalization using Jasanoff and Kim’s (2009) notion of sociotechnical imaginaries(STI). The assessment presents a mixed picture of agricultural digitalization: multisectoral representation in governance supports a whole-of-society approach to service delivery, while existing policies—despite their fragmentation and limitations—demonstrate continuing policy attention to digital inclusion. Similarly, the decision-making by the Philippine state and its stated program priorities have linked imaginaries of inclusive digital agriculture to notions of economic development, modernization, and globalization. Efforts to provide equal access to agricultural innovation, however, remain uneven and constrained by persistent institutional and structural barriers. The study thus calls for the institutionalization of a national policy ondigital agriculture.
“This textbook is about modern agricultural economics and policy aimed at advanced degree students.Based on the lecture notes taught at the University of California, Berkeley, it presents a comprehensiveperspective on agricultural policy, its evolution, challenges, and limitations. The first part of the bookincludes cutting-edge analytical analysis of production, technology, risk, environmental, and policyissues in agriculture. The second part of the book applies the analysis in areas of agricultural supplychain, food security, land conservation, pesticide use, and climate change. The book provides amultidisciplinary approach to analyse natural resources and environmental issues in agriculture, andintroduces readers to the concepts of sustainability, biodiversity, bioeconomy, supply chain, and therole of agriculture and natural resources in addressing climate change. The book includes numerousapplications as well as six problem sets with selected solutions.” —World Scientific, book description
For agriculture, market conditions change rapidly, whereas agricultural policies tend to follow with a lag. Debates are prolonged in the absence of sufficient information about the potential impact of policies across different groups and on society in general. When policies do adjust, changing conditions may render them obsolete, repeating the cycle. Models to assess potential policy impacts exist, but take time to adapt to changing market conditions, and their workings tend to be opaque to most stakeholders. Policy discussions are best informed by just-in-time analyses that are easily replicated and transparent. This paper presents one such model, the Rapid Evaluation of Market Equilibrium with Differentiated Origin Sectors (REMEDIOS), implemented in a spreadsheet with a solver option. It is made freely available subject to proper attribution. The Excel file may be downloaded for free from http://bit.ly/3YQpL9J. It is applicable to an arbitrary commodity and country. In this paper, the author undertakes a numerical application to the Philippine rice market, with baseline specified using 2024 data. Despite its simplicity, REMEDIOS is versatile enough to capture various market conditions and policies, such as increased supply, lower world price, increased tariffs, an import quota, and a floor price for paddy. REMEDIOS is capable of identifying which policies benefit society, and the size of these benefits, by estimating losses and gains to producers, consumers, and government. The analysis highlights the usefulness of REMEDIOS in current policy debates in the Philippines and, potentially, in future policy discussions and in other national settings.
Low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) technologies such as long range wide area network (LoRaWAN), which utilize the LoRa physical layer modulation, have become prominent for Internet of Things (IoT) deployments in large agricultural areas. This is due to their low-power and long-range transmission. However, data transmission in large farms with diverse landscapes suffers from obstructions or occlusions, and it is difficult for wired gateways to cover the whole agricultural area without proper network or power infrastructures. This study integrates LoRaWAN gateways with a flying drone to enhance connectivity to LoRa nodes deployed in an oil palm plantation. The study mounted the LoRaWAN gateway on a multi-rotor agricultural drone and compared data transmission employing the flying gateway and a fixed gateway on multiple nodes across the plantation. Data transmission recovery (35%) significantly improved at locations where data was lost when using a fixed gateway. All nodes successfully transmitted a maximum payload of 50 bytes at the minimum Tx power of 6 dBm, which is preferable in smart farming applications. This work supports IoT monitoring in large agricultural areas with limited network coverage and accessibility.
Spray drift poses a significant challenge in agricultural operations, with substantial implications for the environment, health, and the economy. This literature review synthesizes findings from recent research to address the multifaceted nature of spray drift, focusing on the influence of meteorological factors such as wind speed, direction, temperature, and humidity, as well as technical factors of UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) such as flight altitude and speed, in the Malaysian context. Studies have indicated that higher wind speeds and adverse meteorological conditions, particularly temperature and humidity, intensify drift, necessitating comprehensive monitoring. UAV technical factors also play a crucial role, with optimized flight parameters reducing drift effectively. Comparative analyses between aerial and ground spraying reveal lower drift in ground spraying, although aerial spraying is advantageous in inaccessible terrains. The environmental and health impacts of spray drift are substantial, affecting water bodies, nontarget vegetation, beneficial insects, and human health, emphasizing the need for stringent safety measures. Economically, spray drift leads to significant yield reductions and quality degradation, causing financial losses for farmers. Effective risk assessment and management strategies, combining modeling tools like AgDISP and AgDRIFT, field studies, technological innovations, and regulatory measures, are essential for mitigating drift risks. Despite comprehensive findings, gaps remain in understanding the interaction effects between meteorological and technical factors, long-term environmental and health impacts, and the cost-effectiveness of mitigation strategies. Future research should focus on these areas to develop more effective, context-specific solutions.
