Small-scale farmers are now more equipped to grow more food and improve their earnings
21 November 2024 – Basseterre, Saint Kitts & Nevis – A recent hands-on training session aimed at empowering small-scale farmers with the knowledge to use digital sensors in protected cultivation and open field systems led jointly by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries & Marine Resources has concluded at the Department of Agriculture in Basseterre. A total of 19 participants including farmers and government staff gained practical experience with cutting-edge sensor technologies that are transforming the agricultural landscape, helping farmers improve crop management and productivity.
Held under the project, “Strengthening Protected Agriculture to Improve People’s Livelihoods, Food, and Nutrition Security”, the workshop covered essential sensor applications, including the operation of water, soil, and environmental sensors. Demonstrations focused on connecting hardware components, activating sensors, and utilizing software platforms to track and analyze key agricultural parameters. Through these demonstrations, participants learned how these sensors provide real-time data on soil moisture, nutrient levels, and environmental conditions, enabling farmers to make timely informed decisions based on real-time farm data.
During her opening remarks, Tonisha Weekes, Project Focal Point in the Ministry of Agriculture stated, “the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries & Marine Resources is pleased to obtain the technical support from FAO for this timely training on digital tools to improve production of vegetables in protected cultivation systems in St. Kitts and Nevis. On behalf of the Ministry, I welcome all participants to a productive training session and hope that the use of precision agriculture tools will be adopted widely on farms following this intervention.”
Melvin Medina Navarro, FAO’s Lead Technical Officer and workshop trainer who provided an insightful introduction to sensor technology and its use in agriculture, highlighted that, “the use of digital sensors in agriculture provides an opportunity to better understand crop performance through data monitoring of important parameters that directly affect yield and ensure timely decisions”
The use of soil sensors to measure soil humidity levels, for example, allows farmers to make precise irrigation decisions, conserving water and minimizing resource waste. Environmental sensors offer real-time data that supports tracking of a wide range of parameters, while mobile access to this data empowers farmers to take timely actions to protect crops, improve productivity and enhance food security and food safety.
Richard Paris, a hydroponic farmer in Nevis and participant stated, “The digital sensor training was very good. I learned how these tools are used to monitor different parameters in the soil, environment and water, as it pertains to crop farming. As a hydroponic farmer I can see the benefits from the use of these sensors: the environmental sensor can be used to monitor the climate inside my greenhouse and the water sensor to check my water quality, temperature, dissolved oxygen levels, conductivity and pH”. He also added that the most valuable aspect is that the readings are not only collected but also digitally recorded and stored in the cloud, allowing him to track data over time and gain a deeper understanding of the conditions affecting the growth of his crops.
This initiative is part of an ongoing project designed to promote the adoption of innovative, affordable agricultural technologies. The project seeks to equip farmers in St. Kitts and Nevis with digital sensors and tools to pilot these low-cost solutions, enabling year-round cultivation of high-value crops. At the end of the training, two farmers received sensors to begin piloting the use of digital sensors on their farms. The next phase of the project will equip additional farmers in both St. Kitts and Nevis with digital sensors to further pilot low-cost, practical digital solutions that improve crop management and productivity.
The recent workshop featured both classroom and outdoor training which were led by Laurence Francis, FAO’s National Project Coordinator of Digital Agriculture, while Juan Garcia, Head of Product, Iyris based in United Arab Emirates delivered his training on the sensors virtually.
