IMPLEMENTATION OF AGRICULTURAL DIGITALIZATION ON FARMERS WELFARE IN 5.0 ERA

Abstract

Digitalization of agriculture is a change in the agriculture system from conventional to modern ways by utilizing advances in science and technology. With the digitalization of agriculture, it is expected to improve the welfare of farmers and their families in the 5.0 era. However this is inversely proportional to the condition of farmers in Indonesia, who are mostly elderly so that they experience a very significant learning seatback and affect the process of adopting agricultural innovations. Based on records from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) in 2019 the number of farmers in Indonesia reached 33.4 million people, with the number of young farmers aged 20 -39 years as much as 8% or equivalent to 2.7 million people, while around 30.4 million people or 91% were over 40 years old, with the majority aged close 50-60 years. The involvement of the role of agricultural instructors as facilitators in the farmer’s learning process is very necessary because digital technology is not simple in practice. In addition, the regeneration of young farmers is very much needed so that the application of digital technology can be realized in Indonesia. If farmers do not adopt agricultural technology, they will be left behind in both their ability and agricultural production. The finding of this study describes the effect of digitalization on farmer’s welfare, the characteristics of farmers aged 50 – 60 years, as well as the role of extension workers in delivering digital innovations to increase agricultural productivity.