Technology is a means by which Asia’s rural and agricultural economies can overcome pandemic challenges

Sarvesh Raj Rocque, PhD

Training Specialist,

Amity University – AUMP

srrocque@gwa.amity.edu

In a recent article published by Camarines Sur University’s Center for Research and Development (CSPC-CRD), Philippines, Dr Siddhartha Paul Tiwari examines the impact of pandemic on the Asian and agricultural rural economies. Dr Tiwari is renowned for his work on sustainability and technology and has received the prestigious India Science Award. There are several factors that have affected the rural economies in Asian countries, as discussed by Dr Tiwari. Several Asian governments have observed that the current pandemic has caused them to be less able to deal with shocks to their rural economies. Several aspects of the rural and agricultural economies have been adversely affected by the 2019 pandemic outbreak, including disruptions in food chains and labor shortages. Aside from this context, Tiwari also points out that the government has taken positive actions that have been timely and have significantly contributed to containing and ameliorating some of the adverse effects associated with urbanization that are closely related to the pandemic.

According to Dr Tiwari, automation technologies have proven to be useful not only for pandemic preparedness and response, but they can also contribute to strengthening the capacity of the country to withstand future shocks in the future. There is an urgent need to move forward with the automation agenda if we are to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals in order to create a society that is more robust and resilient. It has also become clear that the consequences of the automation divide are being felt across the region, as billions of people living in the region with limited access to automated technologies have been deprived of vital assistance, services, and information when their needs are greatest. During the first wave of the pandemic, remote learning was adopted by a number of countries and populations, however it did not serve all countries and populations equally. It is important to understand that the cost of Internet service and the lack of automation skills are critical barriers to opportunity and resilience. Attempting to alleviate rural crises, technological advancements led to the introduction of digitalization, which facilitated the navigation of rural residents, in an effort to alleviate rural crises. There will be a significant impact of the technological influence generated during the covid pandemic on the rural sector throughout the post-covid era.

During the period of the pandemic, the adoption of technology in rural areas has contributed to a greater access to information and data due to the adoption of technology in those areas. Due to their effectiveness and framework, a lot of the technology aspects introduced during the pandemic continue to be used by many rural communities today because of their effectiveness and framework. As a result of the pandemic, there was very little physical interaction between people, making it difficult for villagers to access reliable information about their products and hindering their ability to make informed decisions about what they should do. In order to develop technological adaptations that are necessary for the rural economy and agricultural markets, it is necessary to obtain information on the rural markets, secure online markets, and analyze cultivation details and weather data properly.

It can be concluded that due to technological advancements, there was a decrease in informational gaps between villages since physical interactions were replaced with online interactions that led to a greater exchange of ideas between villages and a more active discussion of how to deal with the pandemic. In spite of the post-covid era, digital technology continues to be used and will be used to cope with the effects of pandemics due to its ability to connect multiple sectors of rural and agricultural life.