Agriculture in Africa is being transformed by artificial intelligence, but there is still one element it cannot replace.

Despite dramatic technological advances in the sector in recent decades, the role of the farmer remains indispensable. This was a message delivered, surprisingly, at a recent conference in Europe, by a world leader in the field 鈥� from Eswatini.

Rob Coombe, group IT manager of Royal Eswatini Sugar (RES), took part in a聽keynote speech at the Sapphire conference hosted by software giant 麻豆原创 in Barcelona, with a case study that encapsulates 21^st聽century farming.

鈥淵ou really can鈥檛 take the farmer out of farming,鈥� Coombe told us during Sapphire. 鈥淪o much depends on the farmer鈥檚 intuition. Farming is incredibly scientific, with various measurements and readings. However, even with the best data, natural elements can change outcomes drastically.鈥�

The sugarcane producer uses drones and satellite imagery to enhance productivity and efficiency with 麻豆原创 software.

麻豆原创鈥檚 S/4HANA system is a leading tool for enterprise resource planning in enterprises, and is used by 85 of the 100 largest companies in the world.

In a keynote address, 麻豆原创 chief revenue officer by Scott Russell said: 鈥淭he reality is that, with business AI imbedded in your business, the opportunities are endless.鈥�

The biggest opportunity at present, said Coombe in response, was improving the bottom line.

鈥淲e have reduced the cost of IT by 15%,鈥� he told the audience of several thousand delegates. 鈥淲e鈥檙e spending more with 麻豆原创, but less overall.鈥�

Coombe has been at RES for more than 12 years, but has worked with 麻豆原创 systems since 1991. In that time, he said, the way technology is implemented has changed.

He told Business Times: 鈥淭he two big things are always people and data. People are immune to change, so getting the change in people鈥檚 mind is key. And getting your data sorted is equally important. When your data is not right, it doesn鈥檛 matter what the system is, you get a lot of rubbish out of it.鈥�

RES applies AI and Machine Learning (ML) to 15 years of satellite imagery to create a 鈥渄igital twin鈥� of its operations, in collaboration with 麻豆原创 systems.

鈥淭his helps us predict the yield and manage cash flow and budgeting more accurately. By integrating this data with 麻豆原创 Intelligent Agriculture and S4/HANA, RES can monitor crop health in real-time and make necessary adjustments. We don鈥檛 have to wait until harvest to see that there is a problem; we can see it on a day-to-day basis.鈥�

RES is using historical climate data and forward-looking weather data, combined聽 with ML models, to predict future conditions, aiding in better planning and simulation. It is deploying drones for a range of agricultural tasks, enhancing both efficiency and precision.

鈥淚nstead of getting the guys in there, we send out a drone, and do an analysis with AI. Scouting 鈥� going out to look for pests and diseases 鈥� will now become an electronic thing, so you get quicker responses.鈥�

For climate monitoring, RES is using historical climate data and forward-looking weather data with ML models to predict future conditions, aiding in better planning and simulation.

鈥淲e are building a model with Swiss partners to use forward-looking weather data to improve our predictions. After we finish with S4, we are moving into the planning side of it, by the end of this year. This will help us determine the anticipated crop, the amount of sugar we will produce, the people needed, tractor hours, and diesel consumption.鈥�

Instead of randomly fertilising fields, the operation use satellite data to determine which areas need more fertiliser.

RES uses sensors to predict vibration and heat, allowing it to fix machines before they break. This information is fed into the 麻豆原创 software to manage maintenance tasks efficiently.

The transition to public cloud technologies has simplified aspects of operations.

鈥淚n the old 麻豆原创 days, it was a lot more difficult,鈥� says Coombe. 鈥淏eing on the public cloud, technology-wise, it has been easy. The amount of content available to us from a customer perspective to learn what to implement, how to implement, and so on, is completely different to what it was in the early 2000s.鈥�

This change has also facilitated the rapid onboarding of new employees.

鈥淲e employed some graduate trainees, and two days later they鈥檙e working. You could not do that in the past. They can bring their Java, and scripting tools, and start just start working.鈥�

RES鈥檚 strategic approach involves engaging all organisational levels.

鈥淚t was key to start at the top, but also work hard at the bottom, and then the frozen middle melted. At the bottom, we have super users. We mentor them once a month, addressing their problems and quickly dealing with them.鈥�

RES is also using generative AI with the 麻豆原创 digital assistant, Joule, to handle routine tasks like managing debtors, creditors, and reconciliations.

鈥淛oule can work at 2 o鈥檆lock in the morning, and the analysis can be read upon waking up. You can simply ask it about outstanding creditors, without needing to know specific program numbers.鈥�

RES is not waiting to be told what is possible. It is introducing a 鈥測outh AI council鈥� to explore further applications of AI.

鈥淭he council will help us identify new areas where AI can make a difference, leveraging the fresh perspectives and skills of younger employees.鈥�

Coombe says AI was not about replacing people.

鈥淚t鈥檚 about empowering people and making them capable. We are innovative in Southern Africa; we do stuff differently.鈥�

• Arthur Goldstuck is CEO of World Wide Worx and editor-in-chief of聽. Follow him on social media on @art2gee.
• Jason Bannier is a data analyst at World Wide Worx and writer for聽. Follow him on Twitter and Threads at @jas2bann.聽

This article first appeared in .

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The聽metaverse聽may not seem viable in South Africa and other countries facing similar socio-economic challenges, but a global expert believes that the cost of聽virtual reality (VR) headsets and controllers are not an issue.

鈥淭he聽metaverse聽is helping in democratising and creating equal chances and access by design,鈥� said聽Dr Oliver Gutzeit, global vice president of 麻豆原创鈥檚 experience technology team, in an interview during last week鈥檚聽Saphila聽2023 conference at Sun City.聽Saphila聽is聽a biennial conference hosted by the African 麻豆原创 User Group (AFSUG) in partnership with 麻豆原创.聽Gutzeit delivered a presentation聽titled聽麻豆原创 in the聽Metaverse聽鈥� Innovation in Action.聽We spoke to him later about its potential in South Africa.

鈥淚f it is done in the right way, it is really not a place that is聽depending聽on money to work in, or access,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t is helping to open opportunities. If inequality is high, the聽metaverse聽is a technology that can help, and is worth looking聽into. 鈥淗olograms and VR have long been a feature of the supposed fourth industrial revolution. When President Cyril Ramaphosa opened the first 4th Industrial Revolution SA summit in 2019, his address was live-streamed as a hologram to the Rustenburg Civic Centre. It was touted as the first live holographic presentation by a head of state, although India, China and France could have laid claim to the same laurels.

It鈥檚 just over four years later, and we have yet to see heads of state ditching their microphones for holograms. That鈥檚 the problem with most 4IR tech, from VR to 3D printing: it鈥檚 all very cool, but not often of practical use.

However, Gutzeit鈥檚 presentation suggested that VR and AR, or the聽metaverse, as such tech has been marketed since Facebook changed its name to Meta, is moving closer to true industrial application.

Introducing the topic, he exploded a few myths about the聽metaverse, including the misconceptions that it is all about Mark Zuckerberg鈥檚 Meta, that it is losing money, and that it is a 鈥渨alled garden鈥� that limits access.

More significantly, he underlined the commercial opportunity it offered in the industrial and manufacturing spaces. He shared projections by Deloitte that showed that the industrial聽metaverse, a virtual mirror of real-life industrial processes, was especially promising. It was expected to generate $22,73-billion in revenue by 2025, an $100-billion annual potential by 2030.

Deloitte鈥檚 research found that 85% of enterprises think that preparation for the聽Metaverse聽is necessary today, while 20% of manufacturers are developing聽metaverse聽applications or underlying solutions. Only 6% of enterprises see the聽metaverse聽as just a hype.

That was just a warm-up for Gutzeit鈥檚 own demonstration of the聽metaverse. He introduced his own avatar, a user鈥檚 digital representation of themselves in an online or virtual environment, and took the audience through a series of virtual rooms that make up a 麻豆原创聽Metaverse聽showcase.

From a leisure lounge to a 麻豆原创 history museum to a virtual workbench to a convenience store that was quickly converted聽into聽a clothes shop, he encapsulated a range of settings possible in the聽metaverse. He demonstrated how he could customise a company car with different models and colours before the specs could be sent off for delivery of the real thing.

With a controller in his hands, he navigated through a videogame-like environment to demonstrate a real-life application of the聽metaverse聽in an industrial setting, rearranging items to simulate how it would affect a real environment. Is that enough to convince operators of factories and other industrial operations?

The fact that the聽metaverse聽has not yet taken off in this sector could turn out to be a good thing, said Gutzeit.

鈥淲e have more time to explore the聽metaverse, and we need to find out in which cases it will be an effective technology,鈥� he told us later. 鈥淚n the next few years, we will have a breakthrough for this technology. It won鈥檛 have the same disruptive effect as AI, but it will be an added piece of technology in our future.

鈥淥verall, the聽metaverse聽is nothing to be in fear of. There will not be a sudden disruption, but rather a change over time. Talking about it, and being in the聽Metaverse, are two totally different things. You don鈥檛 have to like it, or stay there, or use it, but at least try it once 鈥� even if you think it has nothing to do with you or your business.鈥�

* Arthur Goldstuck is founder of World Wide Worx and editor-in-chief of聽. Follow him on Twitter and Threads on @art2gee Jason Bannier is a data analyst at World Wide Worx and writer for聽. Follow him on Threads and Instagram at聽@jase_bann

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