Under the Agrarian Artificial Intelligence project, 13 solutions are already operational, while another 11 are at the testing stage. Development continues on seven more solutions, and work on two has not yet started. This was announced by Azerbaijan's Deputy Minister of Agriculture Ilhama Gadimova at a press conference dedicated to the project's implementation and technological innovations in the agricultural sector.
The deputy minister noted that a total of 24 solutions have been completed. The developed systems assist farmers at various stages of their work: from crop selection and irrigation scheduling to assessing disease risks and determining the timing of plant treatment with chemicals.
"The solution for forecasting disease and pest risks calculates the risk of disease occurrence on a farmer's plot on an hourly basis and tracks the pest's development stage. Currently, the system covers 18 diseases and pests of eight types of fruit crops. The solution for determining the timing of chemical treatments indicates the appropriate time, taking into account wind, precipitation and temperature," Gadimova said.
According to her, four solutions have been deployed under the crop selection programme. They enable the selection of suitable plants and varieties for a specific area based on soil and climatic conditions, as well as determining optimal sowing dates.
"The risk map by plant development phases shows the risks of cold and heat exposure during sensitive periods based on 15 years of data. The risk warning system for already planted crops informs the farmer in advance about possible cold snaps and heatwaves in the coming days that could affect the variety they have planted," she explained.
Gadimova said that three solutions are operational under the irrigation management programme.
"The solution that determines water demand at the level of an individual plot calculates daily evaporation, precipitation and water balance, recommending the optimal time for irrigation. Similar calculations are also carried out at the district and national levels. A dynamic soil moisture map based on satellite imagery shows areas experiencing water deficits. Currently, this solution is intended for use on cotton fields," the deputy minister said.
She added that under the farmer rating programme, the economic performance of farms, their attitude towards land and the environment, and the use of modern farming methods are assessed. In addition, development directions are indicated that can help improve farm ratings.