Launching the application AI Plant Doctor

Attending the event were representatives of the local agricultural governments: Ms. Vo Thi Kim Phuong- Deputy Director of Tien Giang Province’s Department of Cultivation and Plant Protection; Ms. Nguyen Thi Mong Thi - Deputy Director of Long An province’s Department of Cultivation and Plant Protection; representatives of Thanh Long cooperatives, cooperatives, agricultural enterprises and local farmers.

Adapting to the Covid-19 epidemic, the event was simultaneously hosted online and received online attendance by Dr. Sivapragasam – CABI’s Regional Director of Southeast Asia, Mr. Muhamed Faheem - National Coordinator of CABI Vietnam's Global Plantwise and colleagues from CABI, an international organization with 50 member countries, including Vietnam. In addition, the Application Launching Ceremony also received the attention and participation of many domestic and international enterprises, experts, and sponsors.

Opening remarks, Dr. Sivapragasam emphasized the significance and importance of the Project as Vietnam in recent years has made great achievements in the economic reform process, especially in agriculture, Vietnam needs to “create more from less” to achieve economic value. To do that, the trend of applying the technologies of Industry 4.0 will be a lever to promote the development of modern Vietnamese agriculture in the future. The cooperation with the company who owns the most advanced technologies in the world in the field of information technology and telecommunications such as BOM Software Company helps CABI and its member countries accelerate the process of realizing the millennium sustainable development goals that they are chasing. Dr. Sivapragasam highly appreciated the breakthrough idea and pioneering role of the project development team and did not forget to send a special thanks to Ms. Bui Thi Huy Hop and her organziation – VISTIP for their contribution in promoting this cooperation. At the same time, he assigned Mr. Muhamed Faheem as the focal point for CABI to continue with Ms. Hop and her team to develop and continue the second phase of the Project to create technology that will help farmers identify and managing pests and diseases that threaten local, regional and national crops, livelihoods and food security. “This will showcase CABI's expertise on digital pest and disease management ”.

Dr. Nguyen Van Hoa - Deputy Director General of SOFRI shared about the roles, orientations, enthusiasms of SOFRI in this project. He said: “In the past and present, SOFRI have built a Plant Clinic to consult and monitor directly crops diseases for farmers at the clinic or communicate by flyers. However at the present, farmers have a better life before and almost people have owned smart phones. It can be said that the application known as AI Plant Doctor is completely suitable in consulting operations with the industrialization orientation of the agricultural sector. It helps consult, support farmers more convenient, easier, synchronous and broader. In the future, I hope that this application will be developed stronger to connect farmers with agricultural businesses, exporters. At the same time, AI Doctor Application will be develop and apply on many crops and other diseases”.

At the event, the R&D team leader, Ms. Bui Thi Huy Hop – VISTIP’s Deputy Director shared about the project: “AI plant doctor was born in the context of the industrial revolution 4.0 trend taking place strongly in the period of international integration; and Vietnam's participation in the CABI's Global Plantwise recently achieved some results, but still limited. The need to exchange - connect between farmers and agricultural experts is increasingly high in order to exchange experiences, update knowledge - professional skills, consult solutions to treat pests and diseases... but encountering shortcomings, difficulties in travel and related costs, it is necessary to have a technology solution to do and overcome the obstacles”. And the idea of ​​AI Plant Doctor Application integrated with Artificial Intelligence and Bigdata technology to help trace diseases of crops, connect farmers and experts, update knowledge - thoroughly farming skills, agricultural news and creating a globally connected 4.0 farming community are born.

Dr. Nguyen Thanh Hieu - Head of Science, Technology and International Cooperation Department of SOFRI said: “Vietnam is one of the countries with a large export turnover of dragon fruits to markets in the United States, North America and especially China. But those countries have also begun to become our competitors when applying high-tech cultivation models that bring better yields and quality of fruit. Therefore, to compete in the international market, farmers and Thanh Long growers need to quickly update their knowledge and technology in the cultivation - production process”.

During the discussion session of the program, speakers, experts, representatives of local agricultural authorities, businesses and farmers have shared and commented on development orientation of the Application in the future. AI Plant Doctor application will continue to develop systems to track pests and diseases in dragon fruit trees and many crops. Target users of the application are not only farmers and agricultural experts, but also those who love farming, students of agriculture can use to update their knowledge - skills for and at the same time become experts in the future.

Mr. Muhamed Faheem said that by 2021, CABI will launch the Plantwise plus program with more orientation on Technology, emphasizing value chain issues, climate change and approaches that engage young people. The AI Plant Doctor is closely linked to the Plantwise Plus, and CABI “are willing to move it expanding this app from Dragon fruit to many other crops to takes Vietnam a step forward in its impressive agricultural transformation Plan and drive to future of IR 4.0 technologies. CABI in collaboration with VISTIP, BOM Softwe & collaborators will develop bigger project and collectively excell this to international donor forum and government for financial support. We arleady creating blogs and add in the global annual report to hightlight this intiative AI Plant Doctor to other Plantwise member countries. So again in coming time we continue to do this”.

On behalf of farmers and Thanh Long tree production enterprises, Mr. Nguyen Khac Huy- Vice Chairman of Long An province Association contributed his opinion on difficult challenges in cultivation and export dragon fruits of businesses and farmers. He said: “Vietnam dragon fruit are exported a lot to markets in China, Indonesia, the Philippines and other high demanding markets such as Japan and Korea. The most difficult is the dragon fruit’s white spot disease, which has hindered the export, making the difference between bad and beautiful fruit very high. The Association and farmers' desire that the AI ​​Plant Doctor research team can handle this disease and anthracnose so that the yield and quality of dragon fruit can be improved and meet export standards”.

On the side of the local agricultural government, Ms. Vo Thi Kim Phuong - Deputy Director of the Tien Giang Province’s Sub-Department of Cultivation and Plant Protection said: “Currently, Thanh Long is one of the seven main crops of the province, widely grown in districts of Cho Gao, Tan Phuoc and Go Cong Tay, includes red and white flesh dragon fruit. Quality is increasingly improved by applying many technologies in production. But there are also many difficulties in terms of capital, mechanization services, disease care services, costs, ... making dragon fruit trees reduce export output. In the coming orientation, projects of science and technology application will be applied to the production process, so the synchronous application of AI Plant Doctor in many localities will contribute to the implementation of the high-tech agriculture projects”.

The AI Plant Doctor application with the motto “Accompanying with Farmers” was officially launched and introduced to local authorities, businesses, cooperatives, and farmers. It is available on CH Play, App Store. In the coming time, by coordinating with local agricultural agencies, the application will be developed with technologies to track many diseases and insects, provide nutrition advices to take care of Thanh Long trees as well as many other fruit trees in order to respond to the needs of Vietnamese agriculture and farmers.

*Some pictures at the Launching Ceremony of the Application AI Plant Doctor

Overview of the Launching (Photo by VISTIP)

Instructions to install and experience AI Plant Doctor Application (Photo by VISTIP)