Da Lat town wins $3 mln South Korean grant for smart agriculture project

A smart agriculture project in the Central Highlands town of Da Lat has won a $3 million South Korean grant that will fund construction and market development activities.

The agriculture ministries of both countries organized an inauguration ceremony for the smart farm in Da Lat, Lam Dong province on Wednesday.

The farm is part of a larger project to "Establish a smart and safe agricultural product value chain in Vietnam."

The South Korean grant, awarded to the Center for Digital Transformation and Agricultural Statistics, will facilitate implementation of the project at the Potato, Vegetable and Flower Research Center in Da Lat.

The project will cover seven activities: building and installing smart farms; domestic and overseas training; technology transfer through foreign specialists; product branding; establishing market linkages; making policy suggestions for smart farm growth; and providing device support.

An unnamed spokesman for the digital transformation center said that the project has currently created 5,700 square meters of greenhouses using South Korean technology and planted strawberries, peppers, and tomatoes.

The center has planned six short-term training sessions and two long-term courses for over 150 students and created the ViKo-Farm brand, he added.

The farm aims to demonstrate a smart farming concept that applies modern smart farm management technologies developed in South Korea, adapting it to Vietnamese circumstances.

The spokesman said the project will continue to cultivate crops like strawberries, tomatoes, and peppers, register trademarks and give out food safety certificates for various products from now until 2025.

The center will also analyze data, perfect digital management apps, enhance technological processes, propagate information, and conduct trade promotion and training programs.

Yoon Won Sup, director of the Agroforestry Policy Department under South Korea’s Ministry of Agriculture, Foo, and Rural Affairs, noted at the inauguration ceremony that Vietnam and South Korea had recently issued a joint statement to upgrade the bilateral ties to the level of comprehensive strategic partnership.

The launch of the project to develop a smart and secure agricultural product value chain in Vietnam will make critical contributions to enhancing bilateral cooperation and partnership, he added.