17 Oil Palm Bulletin 57 (November 2008) p. 17 - 26 Informatics in Agricultural Planning, Management and Production Weng Kin Lai * ; Tomas H B Maul*; Chen Change Loy* and Yuet Yean Lee** * Centre for Advanced Informatics, MIMOS Bhd, Technology Park Malaysia, 57000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. ** Grid Computing, MIMOS Bhd, Technology Park Malaysia, 57000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. ABSTRACT Malaysia is blessed with a tropical climate that is conducive for the growth of many commercially viable crops like oil palm, rubber, cocoa and pepper. For over 50 years now, agriculture has played a very signifcant role in the development of the nation’s economy. However, the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is predicting that global competition between exporters of agricultural commodities will intensify over the next 10 years in both developed and developing countries. Stiff competition, combined with higher productivity from the farmers in the developed nations, will result in a sharp drop in real prices for many of these agricultural produce. Hence, farmers will have to make strong concerted efforts to improve effciencies so as to maintain their proft margins. Under the Ninth Malaysia Plan, agriculture will be revitalized as an engine of growth for the country, with strong emphasis on the use of modern technology to improve crop yields, produce better plant varieties, increase market accessibility, promote precision farming, support good agriculture practices, etc. Informatics, which basically looks at how information and communication technologies process, share and store data as well as information, can help to improve effciencies and productivity in agriculture. This article identifes some of the major issues facing agriculture and explores how informatics can play a role in overcoming them. ABSTRAK Malaysia dianugerahi dengan iklim tropika yang sesuai untuk pertumbuhan sumber semula jadi secara komersial seperti sawit, getah, koko dan lada hitam. Selama lebih 50 tahun, sektor pertanian memainkan peranan penting dalam pembangunan ekonomi negara. Walau bagaimanapun, Pertubuhan Makanan dan Pertanian (FAO) meramalkan persaingan sengit akan berlaku pada peringkat global antara para pengeksport komoditi pertanian di negara- maju dan membangun dalam tempoh 10 tahun akan datang. Persaingan yang berat sebelah, ditambah lagi dengan kadar produktiviti yang tinggi oleh para petani dari negara maju akan mengakibatkan banyak hasil tani negara mengalami kejatuhan harga yang menjunam. Fenomena ini mengakibatkan para petani terpaksa berusaha keras untuk meningkatkan kecekapan demi mempertahankan paras keuntungan mereka. Di bawah Rancangan Malaysia Ke-9, sektor pertanian merupakan jentera pembangunan negara, menerusi penekanan ke atas penggunaan teknologi moden untuk meningkatkan produktiviti, menghasilkan pelbagai tanaman yang lebih baik, menambahkan kemudahan pemasaran, mempromosikan usaha tani yang betul, membantu cara pertanian yang berkesan dan lain-lain. Informatics, yang pada dasarnya meninjau bagaimana teknologi maklumat dan komunikasi, memproses, menyimpan dan mengongsi data dan maklumat, boleh membantu meningkatkan kecekapan dan kadar produktiviti dalam pertanian. Artikel ini mengenal pasti beberapa isu utama berkenaan sektor pertanian dan meninjau bagaimana informatics boleh memainkan peranan untuk mengatasinya. Keywords: agriculture, artifcial intelligence, farming, ICT, informatics. INTRODUCTION Malaysia, a tropical country located near the equator, has excellent natural conditions and conducive climate that support the growth of crops like oil palm, rubber, cocoa, pepper and coconut. Within Peninsular Malaysia, crop cultivation is mainly carried out on the coastal plains, in the river valleys and foothills. Although East Malaysia, which includes Sabah, Sarawak and the Federal Territory of Labuan, is covered with dense jungle and hills, the major commercial crops which include oil palm, pepper and sago are able to fourish in the lowlands. Hence, it is not surprising that for over 50 years