Challenge

The challenge is titled: How might we increase the autonomy of farmers and livestock breeders by accessing information and managing procedures related to their farms?

Context

The Directorate‑General for Agriculture of the Provincial Council of Bizkaia aims to advance towards a model that promotes the autonomy of people in the agricultural and livestock sector in accessing information and managing procedures, reducing their reliance on third parties and removing barriers that hinder self‑management.

The analysis carried out reveals that information in the sector is not readily available to farmers and livestock breeders. When they need access, they must consult different sources; that is, the information is dispersed and fragmented, making it difficult to locate and understand. Although the Provincial Council holds all information regarding agricultural holdings in Bizkaia, it is currently not visible or accessible to farmers and livestock breeders, despite being required for certain procedures, such as animal movement permits. As a result, they turn to different intermediaries, such as Gertu offices or agricultural associations.

These channels are also used when they receive communications from the Provincial Council of Bizkaia that they do not fully understand. These notifications arrive by post and include everything: approval or rejection of grants and subsidies, livestock health‑related restrictions, new sanitary regulations, etc.

This situation—combined with the complexity of accessing administrative procedures and the lack of clear communication channels—creates frustration, loss of time and a strong dependency on third parties to complete their formalities.

Moreover, people in the agricultural and livestock sector face the following barriers:

• Higher‑than‑average age due to the ageing population within the sector.
• A significant digital divide linked to low technological literacy.
• Potential internet connectivity issues in rural environments.
• Difficulties understanding the technical terminology used in communications.

From the analysis, we can conclude that farmers and livestock breeders rely primarily on mobile phones, both for communication and for accessing information (“it’s faster and more at hand than a computer”). Accessing the Electronic Office (SEDE), however, presents many barriers due to the current identification system and the complexity of navigating to find relevant procedures.

All of this limits autonomy and reinforces the need for in‑person support to complete their procedures. In addition, there are many procedures (and very frequent ones) that must be completed for the proper development and management of their farms. Users express a desire for clearer, centralized processes that allow them to anticipate deadlines and regulatory requirements.

This scenario presents an opportunity to rethink how information is organized and communicated to ensure simple, transparent, understandable access, adapted to the needs of the sector.

The Livestock Service uses the internal MUGIDE application to manage all this information. The application has two main views for displaying information and performing actions: the farm view and the animal view. Below are the functionalities available in each view.

Challenge description (PDF)
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