16 INTERVIEW
Innovative solutions designed for Thai farmers
Praphan Chivaphongse, Vice-President, Innovation Department of Total Access Communication (dtac) Thai farmers are currently facing more challenges such as changes in landscape, climate, consumer behaviour and supply chains. They need valid information in decision-making. Information technology from the SMS mobile application to more advanced technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), Big Data and Machine Learning, therefore, plays a vital role in the development of the agricultural sector. In this issue, UPDATE interviews Mr. Praphan Chivaphongse, Vice-President, Innovation Department of Total Access Communication (dtac), on the company’s digital technology and innovation that provide solutions, both for small holder farmers and young farmers. Dtac star ted in 2008 with a call centre and SMS ser vices for a “smar t farmer” project in co-operation with the Department of Agricultural Extension and the Ruamduaychuaykan Sam Nuk Rak Ban Kerd Foundation. Recently dtac in par tnership with Yara, a Norwegian Fer tiliser company, developed a new mobile application, “Kaset Go”. This app combines Yara’s global crop nutrition and digital farming capabilities with
UPDATE 2/2021
dtac’s leading digital connectivity technologies in order to provide farmers with more comprehensive solutions. What is dtac’s role in supporting innovative agriculture as part of Thailand’s agriculture development plan/Bio-, Circular, Green Economic model? We are ready to support the government’s plan by providing technology for agriculture through our 700- MHZ mobile network and agricultural solution app that will extend farmers’ access to key knowledge, technology and innovation. Please share with us dtac’s success stories of the smart farmer projects in Thailand Our very first smart farming project, “Smart Farmer”, in co-operation with the Ministry of Agriculture’s Department of Agricultural Extension (DOAE) and the Ruamduaychuaykan Sam Nuk Rak Ban Kerd Foundation, was aimed at educating farmers in various fields such as rice, cash crops, livestock and aquaculture, and was part of our corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme. After its launch in 2008, we formed a call centre and provided SMS services free-of-charge that
contained useful information on agriculture to about 200,000 SMS subscribers. In 2013, the SMS service was replaced by a mobile application providing farmers with useful information on market prices, crops or even rice mortgages. About 2,000 video clips in the app were accessible to support the farmers in generating more income. Since 2008 we also had awarded ten farmers every year who had successfully applied technology or innovation, from about 300 farmer s nationwide with the aim of giving them moral support and promoting them as role models to inspire other farmers. As most of young farmers are familiar with social media such as Facebook and Line, or searching information via google, dtac co-operated with DOAE in 2016 in training smart farmers in online marketing, payment and logistics, among other useful topics. We successfully trained approximately 30,000 farmers and many of them found that their income increased by around 60%-70%. For example, a coconut farmer in Hat Yai was trained how to do business on Facebook. He later created his own brand with a special packaging promoted and marketed through Facebook, and finally got an offer from a
