RIYADH — The Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture in Saudi Arabia has introduced its e-services for farmers via its electronic platform. Among these services is the "Agricultural Guide" (Murshiduka Al-Ziraa'i) that aims to support farmers in different regions of the Kingdom, by providing instant agricultural consultation services via a smartphone app. This app comes amid the efforts of the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture towards digital transformation and developing its e-services provided to beneficiaries, with the objective of raising work efficiency, facilitating requests for services and expediting procedures. Dr. Bandar Bin Muhammad Al-Saqhan, director general of the General Administration for Agricultural Research and Guidance in the ministry, told "Alarabiya.net" that 80 percent of the services required by farmers are related to knowledge, know-how, and consultations requiring an answer as fast as possible where they are located. He further said that the "Agricultural Guide" (Murshiduka Al-Ziraa'i) app has become an urgent necessity under the current circumstances due to the proliferation of the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim is also to widen the base and to make it a means for intercommunication between agricultural guides, experts and specialists in the ministry, as well as between farmers and agricultural companies and establishments. The app aims to link the two parties via video conferencing and voice calls and exchanging files. Dr. Al-Saqhan added that the app would serve a large segment of farmers wherever they are in the Kingdom, as they will be able to communicate with any of 300 agricultural experts in Saudi Arabia.
