Digital innovations transforming livestock development: LD4D community conversation recap
Insights and actions from our recent LD4D discussions on Digital Innovations for Livestock Development
The recent LD4D Community Conversation on "Digital Innovations for Livestock Development" brought together over 300 innovators, researchers, and practitioners from across the globe for two days of inspiring discussions and knowledge sharing. The virtual event, held on July 31 and August 1, 2024, showcased a range of digital solutions transforming livestock development in low- and middle-income countries. One of the goals is to inspire community members to use innovative approaches for filling livestock data gaps.
Watch meeting videos
To set the scene, guest speaker Dr. Mariette McCampbell provided valuable perspectives on digital innovation trends in the wider agriculture sector. She highlighted opportunities such as increasing production and improving market access, and key challenges around digital inclusion and responsible innovation.
The event then delved into specific digital solutions, with Day One focused on Integrated Management and Health Solutions. Presentations featured innovations like Nigeria's L247-AIMS cloud-based livestock data system and Uganda's AI-powered Jaguza platform. Speakers from India demonstrated how digital technologies are revolutionizing the dairy industry, with comprehensive Livestock Management Systems and smart dairy management suites.
Day Two explored the theme of Unlocking the Potential of Digital Livestock Services Anywhere. Highlights included the use of drones for animal disease surveillance in Kenya, the M-nomad online marketplace connecting pastoralists to buyers, and the AI-powered FlockWise chatbot offering personalized livestock advice to Kenyan poultry farmers.
Engaging discussions
Throughout the event, participants posed a range of thought-provoking questions to the presenters. Key topics covered included animal identification, data privacy and security, and strategies for driving technology adoption and scaling.
While countries such as India have widespread digital animal identification systems, other innovators explained how they work around the absence of such systems. Ugochi Izuora from Nigeria’s Livestock247 explained that they tag livestock from the point of contact, whether at the farm or market, and build a digital database. Ibrahim Hilowle from M-Nomad stated that in Northern Kenya, they work directly with pastoralists to track their animals, as there is no national identification scheme.
Regarding data security and privacy, Chris Janssen from FlockWise emphasised that farm-level data is not openly shared, but used to provide personalised advice to farmers, with their explicit consent. He explained that they encrypt the data, anonymise it where needed, and never share externally without explicit farmer permission.
When discussing technology adoption barriers, Mariette McCampbell identified key challenges such as infrastructure gaps, digital literacy, affordability, and alignment with local socio-cultural norms. She suggested strategies like partnering with community organisations, user-centric design, and exploring government incentive schemes to ensure more equitable and inclusive access.
The event also delved into the specific capabilities of digital technologies to improve health and productivity. Ryan Shin from Bodit shared that their AI-powered disease detection systems achieved over 95% accuracy in detecting behavioural changes linked to diseases. Simon Holland from Barefoot Lightning explained how they integrate veterinarians and paraveterinarians early, use decision support tools, and promote preventive ethnoveterinary remedies to address antimicrobial resistance concerns.
Looking ahead
The discussion served as a launchpad to identify areas where LD4D can support impact in Digital Innovations. Based on participant feedback, the following topics emerged as options for future focus:
Scaling and Transferability: Lessons for making innovations economical, socially-inclusive, and incentivising stakeholders; Business aspects of scaling and transferability
Digital Inclusion and Equity: Best practices for ensuring gender equity and broader inclusivity in digital innovations
Mobile Apps Best Practices: Effective use of mobile apps, including user login considerations
Artificial Intelligence in Livestock Management: Exploring a range of AI applications and considerations, from practical uses to broader issues of governance, ethics, and accessibility
Policies and Governance: Developing policies that enable innovation, scaling, and adoption; best practices in data governance
Financial Viability and Business Models: Creating an environment where farmers are willing to pay for innovations
As a first step, LD4D proposes to coordinate a stocktaking on the use of digital innovations in livestock development, focusing on these key areas. This analysis could synthesise insights on technology usage and implementation, contributing to the development of inclusive and sustainable digital solutions.
Looking ahead, the LD4D community plans to convene further discussions diving into specific topics, starting with the use of satellite technologies for closing data gaps in the livestock sector. By addressing these topics, LD4D aims to help shape the future of livestock development, where digital innovations play a crucial role in building more sustainable and inclusive systems, especially in low- and middle-income countries.