Digital technologies in agricultural development: The experience of Latin American countries

Abstract

The article highlights the main problems of agriculture in the Latin American and the Caribbean (LAC) region and considers “smart agriculture” as one of the directions for solving these problems. It is concluded that information technologies in the industry in LAC are most developed in Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, and Uruguay, and much less in Ecuador, Peru, and several other countries. Among the areas of digitalization of the region's agricultural industry, the following were highlighted: specialized software, digital sensors, drones, robots, autonomous vehicles, territory mapping systems, GPS, cloud technologies, the Internet of Things, big data, precision agriculture, and others. The thesis substantiates that, despite the advantages of using digital technologies in the agricultural sector, LAC countries may face some problems in their implementation, including the high costs of digitalization of production processes, the deterioration of the situation of small farmers due to the risk of monopolization of markets by companies owning modern digital technologies, a reduction in the need for labor resources, and, as a consequence, an increase in unemployment. It is emphasized that these, as well as other risks when introducing digital technologies in agriculture,require further understanding and the adoption of effective measures to minimize them.