Oxfam, an international charitable organisation focusing on the alleviation of global poverty, has started a pilot project to help Cambodia’s rice farmers benefitted through blockchain technology
Blockchain for Livelihoods from Organic Cambodian Rice (Blocrice) project is set to analyse cryptocurrency transactions for 50 farmers and explore how they can receive a better price for their crops.
As reported in the Nikkei Asian Review, Blocrice project aims to promote contract farming in Cambodia between farmers' cooperatives and exporters and buyers. The total agri-value chain will be digitised and enrolled on the blockchain platform so that all business and payment records are automatically updated, said the source.
According to the industry experts, the pilot project is seen to export Cambodian rice to the international marketplaces.
The source further added that the 50 farmers are registering their profiles and farming data which include planting areas and expected yields, into the web-based Blocrice system. The project is expected to run through March 2019 to sell rice harvested in the rainy season, Cambodia’s most important harvesting season, added the source.
If the pilot project turns successful, Oxfam aims to expand it to a large scale in the region.
