Date: 19–21 November 2025

Venue: Alice Reception, Lalitpur (Day 1) & Alliance Française, Lalitpur (Day 2 and 3)

NAAMII, with support from FAO Nepal, concluded a three-day workshop designed to bring key stakeholders together around a unified approach for post-disaster agricultural damage assessment. The sessions were part of the ongoing A2 Innovation Lab project with FAO Nepal, which aims to strengthen Nepal’s capacity to use drones, geospatial systems, and AI for timely and transparent crop loss estimation.

The workshop centered on aligning perspectives from farmers, local governments, technical agencies, and national institutions to validate and refine standard operating procedures. Alongside these discussions, it also educated students and young practitioners in UAV operations, GIS workflows, and AI-based image analysis.

Day 1
The first day focused on establishing a shared technical foundation. Bal Kumar Lamsal, Drone and GIS Data Officer at NAXA, provided an overview of UAV types, autonomous systems, and mapping software including PICTERRRA and PIX4D React. Er. Moti Ram Itani, Aeronautical Engineer and Founder of Pushpak Udaan Aviation Academy, shared his expertise on aircraft design, drone policies, and licensing regulations in Nepal. Practical demonstrations by Sishir Lamsal helped participants understand flight planning, geospatial data collection, and software applications, providing a foundational knowledge of drones, mapping, and AI integration, setting the stage for practical problem-solving.

Day 2
The second day brought stakeholders into problem-driven discussions. Suyog Chalise from Impact 477 guided students through design thinking and problem identification. A representative from Amit drone consultancy demonstrated LiDAR applications for analyzing Nepal’s land and resources. Tashi Bista and Sajal Pradhan from Salt, a wildlife media company, shared their experiences in wildlife photography and videography, including collaborations with the BBC, and highlighted challenges in acquiring filming rights. The day concluded with Sishir Lamsal and Lalit BC demonstrating AI/ML model training for image analysis, enabling students to understand the intersection of drones and AI.

Day 3
The final day centered on feedback, real-world constraints, and pathways to scale. Arun GC from FAO Nepal delivered opening remarks and feedback, followed by Ritesh Jha from the Department of Hydrology who discussed challenges in precision agriculture and flood damage assessment, emphasizing how drone-based AI/ML solutions can improve accuracy and decision-making. Participants explored scaling prototypes, integrating with existing systems, and using baseline data for predictive analysis, gaining practical insights into turning technology into tangible impact. The sessions concluded with discussions on how these projects could be further developed to benefit farmers, local governments, and disaster management efforts across Nepal.

The workshop strengthened coordination among institutions, technical experts, and young practitioners, creating momentum for a national system that links drone data, geospatial analysis, and AI into a unified and reliable process for agricultural damage assessment across Nepal.

3-Day AI-driven System for Post-Disaster Agricultural Damage Assessment Workshop Concludes