Kazakhstan's Agriculture Ministry to develop state support measures for smart farms

At a government meeting, Minister of Agriculture Aidarbek Saparov said the ministry will develop state support tools for smart farms. The aim is to encourage farmers to go digital and to improve production efficiency.

According to the minister, more than 650 enterprises already use digital technologies, and over 200 farms are classified as smart farms. Automated monitoring operates at 112 dairy farms, and automated control at more than 30 feedlots. Agricultural drones, smart irrigation, weather stations, and fuel control and navigation systems are also in use. In addition, the country is introducing traceability systems for crop and livestock products, land resource management systems, and a single digital window for state support.

Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov instructed officials to speed up the creation of a unified national digital ecosystem for the sector. He said that, because data is fragmented, it is currently impossible to see the full picture, from the condition of land to the sale of products. State support, he stressed, must be provided "in a targeted, transparent manner and based on actual data."

The Ministry of Agriculture has been given one month to identify priority support measures, which will be moved to a proactive format based on farms' digital profiles.