Smart technology builds brighter, connected communities
With technology rapidly evolving and impacting life as we know it, how we live at the grassroots level is also changing. While it is mostly urban residents who have benefited from an innovative and interconnected society, there is a push to ensure that rural residents are not left behind.
Rural communities in South Africa continue to face significant challenges, including poverty, unemployment, limited access to essential resources, and environmental degradation. These obstacles hinder these communities' ability to fully participate in and benefit from technological advancements.
On 19 February, a highly significant gathering in East London gets under way. The Smart Village Conference will focus on developing strategies for creating smart villages that harness digital transformation, renewable energy and sustainable agriculture.
Although the "smart village" concept is increasingly being recognised as a strategy for rural development, a clear understanding of what constitutes a smart village is still developing. Traditionally, smartness is linked to the quality of information technology infrastructure. However, it can also be seen as arising from self-organised, bottom-up community actions that address local challenges and exploit emergent opportunities. The smart village concept intertwines technological innovation, economic, environmental, social, and indigenous knowledge resources with cultural and tourism initiatives.
Collaborating with North-West University and the Nyandeni Local Municipality, the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSTI) initiated the creation of an indigenous knowledge-led smart village in the municipality, marking a pioneering step toward rural regeneration in the country.
Prof. Mziwoxolo Sirayi, Adjunct Professor at the of the University of Venda, has been driving the smart village concept in South Africa. He says that there has been a divide between science and indigenous knowledge.
"This chasm is now being bridged, fostering a harmonious integration of both scientific and indigenous ways of knowing. A scholar from the Potawatomi nation, one of the indigenous populations of North America, describes the symbiotic relationship between science and art, matter and spirit, as well as indigenous knowledge and Western science," said Prof. Sirayi.
He said that it is a huge benefit to the country that South Africa's indigenous knowledge portfolio is located within the DSTI.
"It is likely no coincidence that indigenous knowledge is now housed within the DSTI, reflecting a growing recognition of its value in contemporary scientific discourse," he said.
Prof. Sirayi believes it is essential to leverage smart technological solutions in South Africa's rural villages through a community-driven development approach. This strategy should be deeply rooted in indigenous knowledge and grassroots innovation, ensuring that technology serves the unique needs of these communities.
Agriculture is a resource-intensive sector that relies heavily on water and energy to maintain productivity. However, inefficient use of these resources, compounded by climate variability, often leads to wastage, higher operational costs, and environmental degradation. Integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into farming practices presents a transformative opportunity to optimise the water-energy nexus. By leveraging AI-driven solutions, smart villages can enhance resource efficiency, improve agricultural yields, and promote sustainability.
Dr Livhuwani Masevhe, Deputy Director: Science Promotion at the DSTI will co-present a paper that recommends the use of precision agriculture in rural communities to benefit their farming methods and consequently their yields.
"Our prototype is powered by the concept of the internet of things for precision data-driven decision making in real-time. It uses a supervisory control and data acquisition system remote terminal unit to access a wider range of domains and applications including ground and surface water, leakage signatures, solar energy, and agriculture space (irrigation and livestock) data," he said.
"Farming will remain a complex process due to its reliance on a network of climatic, hydro, electrical, and mechanical applications. These interconnected parameters will generate massive data and continue to influence each other's performance, ultimately determining positive or negative yields on the farm," said Dr Masevhe.
The conference will explore several issues such as how we connect smart villages and smart cities; prioritise spatial equity; and equip participants with practical principles and actionable strategies to translate rural-urban developmental ideologies into real-world applications, fostering collaboration and shared learning.
