Authors: Christian Schingo (ABACO) and Georgios Charvalis (NEUROPUBLIC)
Editor: Miranda García Lera (AEIDL)
The Tools4CAP project has released new methodological guidelines and technical protocols on data integration, offering ways to improve the monitoring, evaluation, and compliance of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Building on prior analyses from previous reports—Integration of farm level data towards CAP monitoring and evaluation, and Challenges and approaches for landscape monitoring—,this document provides structured guidance for technical stakeholders, policymakers, and CAP Managing Authorities.
The goal is to equip technical stakeholders with methods that support collaboration and effective communication among technical personnel across organisations—both within and outside CAP authorities, paying agencies, and related institutions. These guidelines and protocols are particularly valuable in the early stages of designing and developing CAP-related software solutions.
To bridge the gap between technical and policy-oriented perspectives, user stories have been developed to capture end users’ needs in clear, structured language. For example: “As a CAP policymaker, I would like to estimate irrigation water needs in NUTS3 XYZ area for 2023.” The seven user stories, outlined below represent key policy questions that guide the development of CAP-related tools and solutions across different sectors.
| USER STORIES | IT SOLUTIONS |
|---|---|
| Soil health | IoT sensors to monitor soil conditions. |
| Pesticides | FMIS and Digital Farm Books integration for pesticide tracking. |
| Nutrients | Variable Rate Technology (VRT) and FaST tools. |
| Animal welfare | Livestock Management Information Systems (LMIS). |
| Sustainable food and waste | Blockchain for food traceability. |
| Landscape features | Earth Observation-based monitoring of biodiversity and agroecological features. |
| Irrigation and water management | Remote sensing, drought monitoring tools, and WEI+ analytics for CAP and SDG indicators. |
Each user story is developed using a scenario-based software engineering methodology, supported by Unified Modeling Language (UML) sequence diagrams. These diagrams illustrate real-world, data-driven solutions, particularly for the CAP tasks of “intervention setting” (providing ways to monitor interventions) and “target setting” (supporting the establishment of baselines).
By providing clear system architecture and process overviews, the document helps technical stakeholders, such as paying agency personnel, in moving from concept to execution during the early stages of software solutions design and tool development. It ensures that requirements, schematics, and technical specifications are communicated effectively to both internal developers and external partners. This helps deliver tools and solutions that align with CAP Strategic Plan objectives and comply with functional and regulatory requirements.
In April 2026, these guidelines will be updated to improve the alignment of user stories with the current framework. The update will draw on case study outcomes to refine practical aspects of tool implementation and produce more accurate UML sequence diagrams, based on feedback from real end users.
More information: D4.3 Methodological Guidelines and Technical Protocols on data integration