International researchers are meeting in Cork Institute of Technology, James Barry Exhibition Centre on Tuesday, April 25th at 9.30am, to continue to plan mobile device training courses for farmers across Europe. The training is part of the Erasmus+ funded project, Smart Rural, which trains farmers in the use of mobile devices. 

The initial research which established training requirements, was conducted in Spain, Austria, France and Ireland  The Irish research was carried out by CIT who deliver a BSc in Agriculture, and BSc (Hons) in Agriculture ,in partnership with Teagasc.

The Irish research showed that the majority of Irish farmers are using mobile devices.  There are a variety of uses including, as expected, phone calls and texts. Other uses include checking the weather forecast and researching agricultural techniques.  Further training in mobile usage will expand the usage and benefits for the farming community.  Catherine Murphy, Project Manager Smart Rural Project at  CIT believes that that the training in mobile devices and usage will open up many new useful applications for the farming community. “Our research shows that farmers are keen to avail of new technologies to support farm efficiency. The training course will support farmers who want to learn more about farming apps” said Ms Murphy 

The Irish course will be designed to specifically meet the need of Irish farmers.  The training will be free for all participants.  Anyone from the farming community interested in taking part in the training can email christine.boyle@cit.ie . Further details on the project are available on https://smart-rural.eu/en/