The Director-General, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa, has emphasised the transformative potential of advanced technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), and blockchain in addressing challenges faced by Nigeria’s farmers, noting that these technologies can revolutionise agricultural practices and improve food security.
ExpressDay learnt on Thursday in Abuja that Inuwa, who was represented by the Director of Digital Economy Department, Saliu Kaka, said this while delivering a keynote speech in Abuja at the launch of the Survey on the Digitisation of Supply-Chain in Small-Scale Nigerian Farms Project organised by AGROVESTO (an Agritech startup and a beneficiary of the iHatch Incubation Programme Cohort 2) in conjunction with NITDA, Office for Nigeria Digital Innovation (ONDI), Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) with Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (FMAFS) as partner.
The event’s purpose was to launch a project that will enable smallholder farmers in Nigeria to thrive, increase their income, and expand their market opportunities thereby creating wealth and prosperity for the country through agriculture.
Inuwa stated that agriculture employs a significant number of Nigerians and accounts for 25.18 per cent of Nigeria’s GDP in 2023 through crop production, livestock, forestry, and fishing, with crop production taking the largest share; maintaining that digitising the supply chain for small-scale farms offers a transformative solution to the challenges of food security in the country.
He explained that small-scale farmers are the backbone of crop production in Nigeria. Still, they face numerous challenges including limited access to technology, high production costs, limited financing, high post-harvest losses, poor market access, labour shortages, and high labour costs.
These issues he noted hinder their productivity and economic potential. Inuwa affirmed that supply chain optimisation will ensure that small-scale farmers can meet the increasing consumer demands, enhance food quality and safety, and promote and utilise sustainable practices.
“This can be achieved through the adoption of technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), which can handle time-demanding tasks using machine learning and predictive modelling; the Internet of Things (IoT), which can monitor crops and generate real-time data to inform automation and best practices; and blockchain, which can provide end-to-end traceability in supply chains with sharable data, building consumer trust and even making it easier to isolate and manage disease outbreaks in crops,” Inuwa said.
“NITDA has been actively supporting the growth of Nigeria’s agricultural sector. One key initiative is the National Adopted Village for Smart Agriculture (NAVSA) which has engaged 965 farmers in integrating technology into agriculture.
“Our Strategic Roadmap and Action Plan, 2024 – 2027 (SRAP 2.0) also highlights our focus on promoting technology in agriculture to boost food security, increase the sector’s GDP contribution, drive economic diversification, and create jobs, aligning with the priorities of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda,” he added.
