Digital technology revolutionising Nigeria’s agricultural sector — Stakeholders
By Oluwaseyi Oduneye-Ogunwomiju
Stakeholders at the 4th Annual Conference of the Federal College of Animal Health and Production Technology, Ibadan, have affirmed the transformative role of digital technology in Nigeria’s agricultural sector.
The conference was themed: “Innovating for the Future: Integrating Science, Smart Agriculture and Emerging Technologies for Sustainability and Global Prosperity.”
The guest speaker, Prof. Babasola Olugasa, Dean, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Ibadan (UI), said internet connectivity was becoming an important tool for farmers to access agricultural information.
Olugasa said the digital space was bringing markets, financial services, extension advice and livelihood opportunities closer to farmers.
“Globally, digital technologies have improved the generation, exchange and use of agricultural information, enabling farmers to obtain timely information on weather, input availability, market prices, production practices and potential buyers,” he said.
He said digital farming could improve household welfare by reducing information asymmetries relating to input sourcing, production practices and market opportunities.
According to him, it could also facilitate financial inclusion, innovation and other income-generating activities.
Olugasa said a study using Nigeria General Household Survey data found that internet usage improved farm and non-farm income among farming households.
He said the study also showed that internet usage reduced the likelihood of household poverty by between 12.4 and 17 per cent, subjective food insecurity by between 7.5 and 10 per cent, and improved dietary diversity by between 14.9 and 22.39 per cent.
“Overall, the findings suggest that digital farming can contribute to poverty reduction and broader household welfare improvement in Nigeria,” he said.
He, however, identified limited connectivity, affordability and digital literacy as major constraints to the full adoption and effective use of digital technologies.
The lead paper presenter, Prof. Kayode Salman, Professor of Agricultural Economics at UI, said digital farming was no longer the future but the present, adding that it was already transforming agriculture globally.
“If digital farming is the destination, internet usage is one of the critical roads that takes farmers there.
“Digital farming is live in Nigeria and making farming easier for farmers. We have Hello Tractor for farmers needing machinery for use,” he said.
Earlier, Dr Moshood Popoola, Provost of the Federal College of Animal Health and Production Technology, said agriculture and animal production were changing rapidly across the world.
Popoola said the challenges confronting food and agricultural systems were multidimensional, including climate change, population growth, food insecurity, emerging and re-emerging animal diseases, declining natural resources and rising production costs.
He also listed changing consumer preferences and the need for more efficient and sustainable production systems among the challenges facing the sector.
“At the same time, we are witnessing remarkable technological developments.
“Artificial Intelligence, machine learning, precision agriculture, biotechnology, genomics, drones, remote sensing, robotics, Internet of Things devices, digital agriculture, data analytics, smart farm management systems and other emerging technologies are transforming the way agricultural production is conceived and practised,” he said.
He said the question was no longer whether technology would influence agriculture, but how institutions, researchers, farmers, entrepreneurs and young people could be adequately prepared to harness the technologies for sustainable agricultural development.
Popoola said institutions such as the Federal College of Animal Health and Production Technology had a critical role to play in preparing young people for the emerging agricultural landscape.
“We must produce graduates who are not only knowledgeable in animal health, animal production, agriculture and related disciplines, but who are also digitally literate, innovative, entrepreneurial and capable of solving real-world problems.
“Our research must also move beyond publications alone. We must increasingly ask ourselves: What problem are we solving? Who will benefit from our research?
“How can the innovation be commercialised? How can it improve farmers’ livelihoods, and how can it contribute to food security and economic development?” he asked.
In her presentation, Dr Mutiat Salawu, Chairman of the Local Organising Committee, said the state of agriculture in Nigeria called for urgent intervention.
She said the conference was an opportunity to confront the challenges of climate change, food insecurity, technological disruption and the quest for sustainable prosperity.
“It’s a call for us to confront the defining challenges of our time: climate change, food insecurity, technological disruption, and the quest for sustainable prosperity.
“We gather here, not only to exchange knowledge, but to shape the trajectory of our collective future,” she said.
Salawu said the conference featured papers covering diverse fields, including Artificial Intelligence, aquaculture, veterinary medicine, molecular sciences, policy analysis and entrepreneurship.
She said the breadth of the conference was deliberate because no single discipline could, in isolation, solve the complex challenges of sustainability.
According to her, scholars must resist the temptation to retreat into intellectual silos because agricultural production was increasingly influenced by technology.
“The farmer’s field is influenced by algorithms as much as by rainfall.
“The health of livestock is inseparable from the health of humans and ecosystems. The economics of aquaculture are shaped by both molecular biology and global trade.
“This conference is therefore a crucible, a place where ideas from different domains can interact, challenge, and enrich one another,” she said.
