How to Keep Farmers Farming throughout Covid-19
Maintaining Farm-to-Table Supply Chains in a Pandemic
The Middle Eastern agrotec company using the cloud to maintain supply in the pandemic.
Empty supermarket shelves were a common sight at the start of the pandemic. Between misguided panic buying and broken supply chains, this was a problem that went beyond consumers. Restocking shelves depended on farmers maintaining stocks of fertilizer, herbicide, and seeds.
Jubaili Agrotec is one of the most recognizable names for agricultural supplies in Africa and the Middle East. And despite the challenges of the pandemic, they knew that the farmers needed them to keep delivering - regularly and on time.
But to make matters even more difficult, Jubaili's already overburdened tech ecosystem was already in need of an upgrade. So, when hundreds of employees suddenly needed the ability to do their jobs from home, something had to change - and fast.
They found their solution in the Cloud.
Agrotec from home
Their trade may be rooted in soil, but Jubaili relies on technology to process orders and coordinate deliveries. Like many office-based organizations, the pandemic forced them to switch to remote work to run the business safely.
But the Lebanon-based company was no stranger to disruption. Their servers in Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda had always been unreliable. The causes were varied, from frequent power outages and erratic connections to political instability.
Plans were already in place to centralize the data, adding much needed stability. But when the pandemic hit, an immediate response was needed, and the timeline was shortened.
They called local IT consultants Capital Outsourcing (C-O). C-O consolidated Jubaili's data into a holistic Microsoft Cloud solution, comprising Microsoft Azure, Microsoft 365, and Windows Virtual Desktop.
"Jubaili was able to solve many longstanding issues by shifting to Microsoft's cloud solution, but also to transition to the reality of the COVID-19 pandemic and continue with remote work easily," said Nissrine Khoury, Operations Director and Capital Outsourcing.
"Jubaili was able to solve many longstanding issues by shifting to Microsoft's cloud solution, but also to transition to the reality of the COVID-19 pandemic and continue with remote work easily,"
Tech on a deadline
Khoury's last point is critical. Although Jubaili were looking for a long-term solution rather than a quick fix, they needed it fast – or risk interrupting vital deliveries. Without supplies, farmers would miss time-sensitive planting windows: the knock-on effect to supermarkets would be disastrous.
C-O connected 600 users to the new solution in just one week, transitioning to a completely virtual environment. Jubaili employees could immediately use the software they needed reliably and securely from wherever they were – picking up where they left off in the office.
Ahmad Moussa, Jubaili Group IT Manager explained, "Virtual desktops give remote users instant access to all business applications, while the scalability of Microsoft Azure ensures effective and reliable service everywhere across the continent."
The new system also included comprehensive disaster recovery and backup, to ensure continuous service to Jubaili's customers, no matter what happened next.
"Our vision at Jubaili Agrotec is 'Let's grow together.' We all believe in this statement. The solutions from Microsoft have helped us stay committed to that vision by helping us move forward fast but making sure everyone is on board."
Growing together
For many businesses, the switch to remote working came like lightning. IT solutions were hastily implemented, patched up later for security; short-term fixes that need reconfiguring or replacing in the long haul. Jubaili's Microsoft Cloud solution is here to stay.
Moussa sees the system as a platform for future success: "Our vision at Jubaili Agrotec is 'Let's grow together.' We all believe in this statement. The solutions from Microsoft have helped us stay committed to that vision by helping us move forward fast but making sure everyone is on board."
Jubaili look set to emerge from the pandemic stronger than they were before. That's good news for the farmers of African and Middle Eastern – and for everyone at shopping at the supermarket.
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