Lohkoketjuteknologian hyödyntäminen ruoan tuotantoketjuissa : kirjallisuustutkimus

Tässä maisteritutkielmassa kartoitetaan lohkoketjuteknologian hyödyntämisen mahdollisuutta Suomen ruoantuotantoketjuissa. Lohkoketjuteknologia on vertaisverkkoperiaatteella (Peer to Peer) toimiva tietokanta, joka hajauttaa verkkotoimintaa tehokkaaksi toimintaympäristöksi ilman keskitettyä instituutiota. Lohkoketjuteknologian innovaatio kätkeytyy lohkoketjun muuttumattomuuteen, jonka kryptografinen suojausjärjestelmä takaa, että kerran laitettua tietoa ei voida muuttaa. Kiinnostus teknologiaan on kasvanut maailmalla finanssilaitosten otettua sen käyttöön. Tämän seurauksena maataloudessa ja ruoan tuotannossa siihen liittyvät tutkimukset ovat lisääntyneet. Lohkoketjuteknologian avulla ruoan seurantatiedot kirjoitetaan lohkoketjuun, jolloin tietojen luotettavuus on taattu ja ruoan turvallisuus varmistettu. Samalla lohkoketjuteknologian hajautettu järjestelmä yhdistää reaaliaikaisesti ruoan toimitusketjun kaikki osapuolet luotettavasti, turvallisesti, avoimesti ja läpinäkyvästi tuottamaan arvoa koko tuotantoketjun tasolla. Tutkielman tavoitteena on antaa ilmiöstä kokonaiskuva, kuten mitä lohkoketjuteknologia on, miten sitä voidaan soveltaa ruoantuotantoketjussa ja kenelle se voisi tuottaa arvoa. Ilmiö on uusi suomalaisessa ruontuotantoketjussa ja tämän takia tutkielma toteutetaan poikkitieteellisesti kirjallisuuskatsauksena ja sinisen meren strategian avulla. Yhdistämällä eri näkökulmia on mahdollista kartoittaa laaja-alaisesti ja kokonaisvaltaisesti ilmiötä sekä teorian toimivuutta. Tutkielman aineisto on kerätty kartoittavan kirjallisuuskatsauksen avulla. Kerätty tutkimusaineisto on koottu Helsingin yliopiston Helka-tietokannasta ja osittain Google Scholarin avulla. Tutkielman aineisto koostu 20 tieteellisestä artikkelista, jotka linkittyvät lohkoketjuteknologian hyödyntämiseen maataloudessa tai ruon tuotantoketjussa Tutkimustulosten perusteella lohkoketjuteknologian käyttöönotto on alkuvaiheessa teknologisten esteiden takia. Vaikka Suomessa on kehitetty maailman parhaita seurantajärjestelmiä varmistamaan ruoan turvallisuutta, toimitusketju ei ole avoin, läpinäkyvä ja tasapuolinen kaikkien osapuolten kesken. Lohkoketjuteknologialla on suuri potentiaali muuttaa nykyistä tuotantoketjua, jos Suomessa hyödynnetään suotuisia strategioita ja politiikkaa sen käyttöönotossa. Teknologia hyödyntäminen tarvitsee strategioita, jotka ohjaavat sen kehitystä maantaloudessa. Lisäksi sen hyödyntämisessä tarvitaan suotuisaa poliittista ilmapiiriä. Tutkielman aikana nousi esiin useita jatkotutkimusideoita lohkoketjuteknologian hyödyntämisen mahdollisuuksista. Voitaisiin esimerkiksi tutkia, miten lohkoketjuteknologiaa voisi hyödyntää rehukaupan hintasopimuksissa.This master's thesis explores the possibility of utilizing blockhain technology in Finnish food production chains. The blockchain technology is a distributed database that decentralizes network operations into an efficient operating environment, without a centralized institution. The innovation in blockchain technology lies in the concensus protocols of the blockchain, whose cryptographic security system ensures that once placed, information cannot be forged from there. In that reason interest in blockchain technology has grown in the world since the introduction of financial institutions and as a result, research in agriculture and food production has grown around the phenomenon. With blockchain technology, the food trace tracking data is written to the blockchain, whereby the security of the data is guaranteed and the safety of the food is ensured. At the same time, the blockchain technology decentralized system connects real-time food supply chain to all parties in real time, reliably, securely, openly, transparently to create value at the entire supply chain level. The aim of this study is to give an overall picture of the phenomenon, such as what blockchain technology is, how it can be applied in the food production chain and to whom it could provide value. The phenomenon is new in the Finnish food supply chains and because of this the study is carried out interdisciplinary in the treatise as a literature review and with the help of the strategy of the Blue Sea strategy. It is possible to survey the phenomenon and the functionality of the theory widely and comprehensively by connecting different research methods. By combining different research methods, it is possible to map the phenomenon and the functionality of the theory extensively and comprehensively. In the scoping mapping, the research materials have been collected with the help of a mapping literature review. The collected research material has been compiled from the Helka database of the University of Helsinki and partly with the help of Google choolar. The material of the dissertation consists of 20 scientific articles related to the utilization of blockchain technology in agriculture or in the food production chain. Based on the research results, blockchain technology is in its infancy due to technological barriers. Even though in Finland has developed the world's best monitoring systems to ensure food safety, at the same time, however, the supply chain is not open, transparent and fair between the parties. For this reason, blockchain technology has a huge potential to revolutionize the current production chain if exploited by favorable strategies and policies in its deployment. Technology needs strategies to guide development in agriculture and its exploitation requires favorable political climate to support it. Further research would be needed for example on how the use of blockchain technology in feed futures trading, such as how a transparent, real-time and open ecosystem of blockchain technology affects feed price fixing

Progress and experiences of implementing an integrated disease surveillance and response system in Somalia; 2016–2023

IntroductionIn 2021, a regional strategy for integrated disease surveillance was adopted by member states of the World Health Organization Eastern Mediterranean Region. But before then, member states including Somalia had made progress in integration of their disease surveillance systems. We report on the progress and experiences of implementing an integrated disease surveillance and response system in Somalia between 2016 and 2023.MethodsWe reviewed 20 operational documents and identified key integrated disease surveillance and response system (IDSRS) actions/processes implemented between 2016 and 2023. We verified these through an anonymized online survey. The survey respondents also assessed Somalia’s IDSRS implementation progress using a standard IDS monitoring framework Finally, we interviewed 8 key informants to explore factors to which the current IDSRS implementation progress is attributed.ResultsBetween 2016 and 2023, 7 key IDSRS actions/processes were implemented including: establishment of high-level commitment; development of a 3-year operational plan; development of a coordination mechanism; configuring the District Health Information Software to support implementation among others. IDSRS implementation progress ranged from 15% for financing to 78% for tools. Reasons for the progress were summarized under 6 thematic areas; understanding frustrations with the current surveillance system; the opportunity occasioned by COVID-19; mainstreaming IDSRS in strategic documents; establishment of an oversight mechanism; staggering implementation of key activities over a reasonable length of time and being flexible about pre-determined timelines.DiscussionFrom 2016 to 2023, Somalia registered significant progress towards implementation of IDSRS. The 15 years of EWARN implementation in Somalia (since 2008) provided a strong foundation for IDSRS implementation. If implemented comprehensively, IDSRS will accelerate country progress toward establishment of IHR core capacities. Sustainable funding is the major challenge towards IDSRS implementation in Somalia. Government and its partners need to exploit feasible options for sustainable investment in integrated disease surveillance and response

Controlling and Monitoring Electrical Appliances Using Smartphone for energy conservation

Abstract Proper managing of electricity and monitoring its status has become increasingly common in the world over the past few years with the advent of Internet of Things (IoT). To eliminate the inconveniences or drawbacks of the existing approaches of energy management, in this work we propose a centralized management system that remotely controls and monitors electric appliances through a mobile application using IoT and mobile technologies. The most significant feature of this system is the mode-based operation, such that when the user activates the auto-mode, lights and fans will remain turned off if there is enough light in an area of the house. With the proposed system, the user gets both the option to control or monitor the electrical appliances remotely over the internet through a web portal or through smartphone (Both Android and iOS). The system is developed to fulfill three specific objectives: User-comfort, cost-effectiveness, and real-life implementation. The system was implemented using C programming language and was successfully tested