Bhubaneswar: Microsoft Co-founder Bill Gates arrived in Odisha on Tuesday evening. He has a number of programs scheduled for today. He is scheduled to review the functioning of Krushi Samiksha Kendra at Krushi Bhavan in Bhubaneswar.
He will visit the Agriculture Bhavan in Bhubaneswar of Odisha. Bill Gates would like to know more about how Odisha is developing farmers and farming techniques using digital infrastructure and technology.
Before his visit to Odisha, he praised the support efforts given to the farmers of Odisha through Bill Gates’ note. He said, the government is providing financial and other related support to empower Odisha farmers by using Digital Public Infrastructure or DPI.
Providing information on how to improve agriculture. The Odisha model is now being followed by other countries. In 2017, Odisha government signed an MoU with Bill Gates Foundation. The MoU was signed to improve the livelihoods of smallholder farmers and promote inclusive farming.
The Department of Agriculture and Farmers’ Empowerment (DOA & FE), Government of Odisha, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in the year 2017 had signed an MoU worth Rs 32 crore to further the objectives of improving the lives of smallholder farmers and promoting inclusive agricultural transformation in Odisha.
The MoU was signed by Hari Ballav Mishra, the then Director of Agriculture and Food Production, Government of Odisha and Nick Austin, the then Director of Agricultural Development at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in the presence of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Agriculture Minister Pradeep Maharathy.
Speaking on the occasion, CM reiterated Odisha Government’s commitment for development of agriculture and allied sectors in the State. He also expected that it would bring improvement in the livelihood of small and marginal farmers.
The MoU will formalize a partnership between the State Government and the Foundation to accelerate the State’s agriculture program and improve the lives of smallholder farmers in the state. The MoU will allow the Govt and the Foundation to partner on agriculture projects, including a project to improve data management, analysis and use within the Department of Agriculture.
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Ms Kalinga