A Romanian state agency overseeing rural investments has adopted artificial intelligence to aid farmers in accessing European Union funds.
Gardening based on aquaculture technology. Image credit: sasint via Pixabay, free license
The Agency for Financing Rural Investments (AFIR) revealed that it integrated robots from software automation firm UiPath approximately two years ago. These robots have assumed the arduous task of accessing state databases to gather land registry and judicial records required by farmers, entrepreneurs, and state entities applying for EU funding.
George Chirita, director of AFIR, emphasized the role of AI-driven automation was groundbreaking in expediting the most important organizational processes for farmers, thereby enhancing their efficiency. Since the introduction of these robots, AFIR has managed financing requests totaling 5.32 billion euros ($5.75 billion) from over 50,000 beneficiaries, including farmers, businesses, and local institutions.
The implementation of robots has notably saved AFIR staff approximately 784 days’ worth of document searches. Over the past two decades, AFIR has disbursed funds amounting to 21 billion euros.
Despite Romania’s burgeoning status as a technology hub with a highly skilled workforce, the nation continues to lag behind its European counterparts in offering digital public services to citizens and businesses, and in effectively accessing EU development funds. Eurostat data from 2023 indicated that only 28% of Romanians possessed basic digital skills, significantly below the EU average of 54%. Moreover, Romania’s digital public services scored 45, well below the EU average of 84.
UiPath, the Romanian company valued at $13.3 billion following its public listing on the New York Stock Exchange, also provides automation solutions to agricultural agencies in other countries, including Norway and the United States.
Written by Vytautas Valinskas