Ater Digital program launched to bring more technology to the field

Initially, R $ 40 million will be allocated to assist farmers with new digital technical assistance tools

Launch of the Ater Digital program - Photo: Antônio Araújo / Mapa

Oct 8, Agriculture: Bring more technology to the field. With this objective, Ater Digital was launched on Thursday (8), from the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply. The initiative will offer new digital technical assistance tools to farmers.

In practice, the program was created to bring more modern services to the sector, through Information and Communication Technologies; ensure agility and faster access to knowledge on agricultural production, rural extension research and technical assistance; and encourage the productivity and competitiveness of Brazilian agriculture. To this end, the Ministry of Agriculture will initially allocate R $ 40 million.

According to the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply, Tereza Cristina, Ater Digital will help the Federal Government to bring public policies to small producers.

“Ater Digital will be very important for everything we have been thinking about doing. How to get there at the small producer, bring him technology, make him improve his life, especially, with income, and can enter the digital age, faster and faster ”, said the minister, when launching the program.

According to her, Ater Digital will help to reduce inequalities in the field. “It will help to improve the lives of those who need a lot, especially to reduce the inequalities that we have in Brazilian agriculture. We have those who have a lot of technology, who have access to technologies, but we have a lot of people who do not have that access and need public policies to reach them, ”added the minister.

According to the 2017 IBGE Agropecuário Census, only 1 in 5 (18.2%) of Brazilian family farmers had any access to technical assistance services. Most of these producers, in the South of the country (49%). In the North and Northeast, this number is 9% and 7%, respectively.

With Ater Digital, the goal for 2030, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, is to reach 50% of these farmers served by Technical Assistance and Rural Extension services.

The program will be implemented in partnership with the Technical Assistance and Rural Extension (Emater) of the country and private agribusiness companies.

Ater Digital - five pillars

The Ater Digital program will be based on five strategic pillars:

- Organization and exchange of information and knowledge, in partnership, for example, with Embrapa and universities;

- Modernization of the information technology infrastructure;

- Sharing of application systems between States and associations.

- Training of extension workers, so that they can have the new technological professional profile;

- Organization of information and technological management.