Analysis of the drivers of Agriculture 4.0 implementation in the emerging economies: Implications towards sustainability and food security

Global food insecurity has become a significant concern, especially for emerging economies. The crisis has been exacerbated recently due to the intense supply chain disruption resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing Russia–Ukraine war. Agriculture 4.0, which combines conventional agriculture with various modern cutting-edge technologies, might help in this regard to improve the food supply and food security. In such a context, it is essential to accurately identify the pertinent drivers of Agriculture 4.0 implementation to ensure sustainability and food security in emerging economies. This study, therefore, aims to classify, assess, and analyze the hierarchical relationships among the drivers of Agriculture 4.0 in the context of an emerging economy like Bangladesh, combining Pareto analysis, fuzzy theory, total interpretative structural modeling (TISM), and Matriced’ Impacts Cruoses Multiplication Applique a un Classement (MICMAC) analysis. Based on the literature review and expert feedback, eighteen factors were identified initially. After employing Pareto analysis, the top thirteen factors have been further analyzed using fuzzy TISM and fuzzy MICMAC to examine their interrelationships. The study findings indicate that “Automation & Robotics to lessen the usage of manual labor”, “Augmented reality (AR) for training new farmers and guiding tool evaluation,” and “Providing adequate financial incentives to impoverished farmers for building modern storage facilities” are the three most influential drivers to implement Agriculture 4.0. This study is expected to contribute significantly to future innovation and development in the agriculture sector, eliminate hunger and improve regional food security. It has the potential to assist the practitioners and industry leaders of emerging economies in strategic decision-making in achieving sustainability in the agricultural sector and thus achieve the relevant SDGs.