From access to empowerment: the real impact of digital skills training on women farmers
Across low- and middle-income countries, the rapid expansion of digital technologies is reshaping agriculture. Yet for many women smallholder farmers, limited access to mobile phones, internet connectivity, and digital skills creates a persistent gender digital divide. In this 2026 International Year of the Woman Farmer, it’s important to not only acknowledge the impacts of this divide on women’s productivity and incomes, decision-making power, market access, and resilience, but also to…
How can AI tools bridge the gender gap for women farmers?
AI tools have the potential to close the gender gap for women farmers. Women contribute around 40% of all agricultural labour but achieve around 23% less productivity compared to men. This is due to many constraints, from a lack of access to credit, inputs, and land, to gender norms that prevent women from accessing agricultural knowledge, skills, and tools.
5 ways digital agriculture tools are transforming pest management
Finding accurate, locally contextualised information at the right time is essential for tackling crop pests. Digital agriculture tools are helping farmers and those who advise them by putting expert knowledge directly in their hands.
Crop Sprayer app helps young spray service providers build sustainable businesses
In Makueni County, Kenya, young spray service providers are transforming how smallholder farmers manage pests. The Crop Sprayer app, developed by CABI PlantwisePlus, is helping agripreneurs reduce pesticide risks through accurate dosage calculations, protecting farmer budgets, human health and the environment.
PlantwisePlus: Growing knowledge, skills and resilience across Vietnam
Across Vietnam’s rice paddies, coffee farms, and pepper plantations, CABI, in partnership with the Vietnam Academy of Agricultural Sciences (VAAS), is helping farmers protect their crops through the PlantwisePlus programme. In Vietnam, the programme supports smallholder farmers through plant clinics, digital tools, and advisory services, directly reaching over 51,500 farmers. Additionally, 2,946 enrolments in CABI…
Meet Shahadul Islam: the rice farmer using digital tools to improve yield and quality
Meet Shahadul Islam, a farmer from Jhenaidah District, Bangladesh. Shahadul is now a local role model for sustainable rice production, having adopted the PlantwisePlus digital tools and transformed his farming practices. For nearly a decade, Shahadul cultivated rice on his one-acre land. He regularly faced pest and disease challenges such as rice blast and brown…
Driving e-extension in Bangladesh through partnerships
“Digital innovation isn’t just about tools, it’s about transforming access to knowledge where it’s needed most.” In Bangladesh, millions of smallholder farmers struggle with unpredictable weather and frequent pest and disease outbreaks. Traditional agricultural extension services often can’t reach them fast enough. Digital agricultural extension, or e-extension, offers a solution. Using mobile phones, apps, and…
Digital skills training: Enabling access to digital advisory tools for women in Nepal
In a world where digital solutions are rapidly transforming agriculture, too many women, especially in rural areas, remain on the periphery of this revolution. This was evident during the promotion of CABI digital tools in Nepal, where we noticed that many smallholder farmers, particularly women, lacked the digital skills needed to access and use information…
From field to farm: How digital innovation is transforming precision agriculture in Uganda
Celebrating youth innovation on International Youth Day In Uganda’s agricultural landscape, farmers once relied on traditional tools for agriculture. An incredible digital shift is changing their lives for the better. Farmers in Luwero, Nakasongola, Nakaseke, and Mukono are now adopting digital tools developed by PlantwisePlus to optimize crop production and their resource investments, such as…
How do pest risk registers address the spread of plant pests in Africa?
Pest risk registers can help to solve problems in agriculture, addressing the growing global threat of plant pests. Moreover, changing weather patterns, led by rising temperatures, are causing them to reproduce faster and expand into new regions. In addition, global trade and increased movement of people are accelerating the spread of pests across borders. These…