In the response to the difficulties in perishable food supply (harvesting and marketing) due to the lockdown, the government of Meghalaya (India) established cloud based iTeams at the Department of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, which normally provide market-oriented services to farmers. iTeams works with multiple actors on the ground including extension advisors, local leaders, and private businesses, as well as local administrations, to assess produce, connect farmers to the logistic chain through a special hotline, and obtain curfew passes for iTeam personnel and vehicles. iTEAMS comprised of government officials, domain experts, and market specialists who work remotely from homes through multilingual IRV, social media, WhatsApp and mobile SMS with farmers, suppliers and consumers.
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