A farmer’s journey toward digitalization

MANILA, Philippines — Edgar Villanueva, a 55-year-old farmer from Kiblawan, Davao del Sur, strongly believed in traditional farming methods – practices honed through years of working the soil providing food for Filipinos.

But as technology started to reshape agriculture, Vilanueva realized that there was more to learn.

Initially, he was hesitant to embrace digital tools. But today, he uses technology to check market prices, reach potential buyers, research farming practices, and make more informed decisions for his farm.

Villanueva was one of the first farmers to join the Digital Farmers Program (DFP), an initiative led by the Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Training Institute (DA-ATI) in partnership with PLDT and Smart.

Through the program, he learned to trust technology, and discovered how it complements his knowledge and experience. With confidence, he can now monitor conditions that affect yield, such as weather patterns and soil health, identify suitable fertilizers, and conduct online research on best practices for crops.

“Through the DFP, I now know how to reach more buyers online,” Villanueva said. “Before this, finding customers was difficult, especially for small-scale sellers like us.”

With access to online market information, Villanueva can now compare prevailing prices for his banana, cacao, and coconut products and make better-informed decisions. With his learnings extending to farm management and financial literacy, he is now looking to purchase another laptop to help manage inventory and move sales tracking from paper to digital. For someone once hesitant to embrace technology, this was a significant shift.

“DFP guided me successfully despite the lack of face-to-face instruction and despite my age,” he said.

The results have strengthened Villanueva’s confidence in his small farm, as coconut sales have nearly doubled since they began applying the digital methods and insights learned through the program.

“We at PLDT and Smart advocate for digital inclusion especially in the agriculture sector and together with DA-ATI, we aim to empower farmers to thrive in the digital economy through the Digital Farmers Program. We are hopeful that this program will help improve the lives and livelihoods of more farmers around the country,” said Stephanie Orlino, assistant vice president and head of stakeholder engagement at PLDT and Smart.

Today, his farm is an accredited Learning Site for Agriculture under DA-ATI. Together with other members of the Kiblawan Multi-purpose Cooperative and DA-ATI’s FarmTech training package, Villanueva shares his learnings about technology, helping others in the agricultural sector gain confidence in modern farming.

His story shows how digitalization can complement the farmers’ knowledge and experience, opening access to information, markets and opportunities for growth.

An integral part of the PLDT Group’s #KonektedforLivelihoods program, which upskills farmers and MSMEs on mobile technology and digital tools and platforms, the DFP has reached around 9,000 farmers through its core training activities conducted by DA-ATI, and more than 5,000 through DFP-related learning sessions, webinars, and partner engagements led by PLDT and Smart. Together, these efforts have brought the program’s broader reach to over 14,000 agri-stakeholders since 2019.