FG, FAO starts the digital platform to reform the agricultural sector

The Federal Government and the Organization for Agriculture of the United Nations (FAO) are guiding the efforts to establish the digital agricultural and agricultural platform of Nigeria, a robust infrastructure that will help actors digitize the chains with agricultural value.

To ensure a supported and transformative impact, the platform uses a co-creation approach of collaborative ecosystems that includes both public and corporate partners.

During the recent launch of the FAO Digital Village Initiative in Lagos, the interested parties discussed the key issues that have to face sustainable agricultural production and the means of subsistence, including post-branch losses, the bosses of the workforce, the lack of verified agricultural data and farmers and the incubation and acceleration of agricultural enterprises.

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The Minister of Agriculture and Food Safety, Senator Abubakar Kyari, underlined that the initiative aligns perfectly with the unshakable commitment of the government to exploit digital tools to encourage transparency and responsibility within the Nigeria agrifood systems.

He described the event as a bold step towards the establishment of the National Integrated Digital Agriculture Platform (Nidap) which “would act as a digital nervous system that connects all the actors and activities between the chains of agricultural value, including farmers, farmers, inputs, climate, funding, goods, research, processors, aggregators, transporters, retailers and consumers.”

“We will work closely with state governments, local communities, the private sector, research institutions and farmers -based organizations to ensure that this platform is centered on people, local owned and suitable for the purpose,” said Senator Kyari.

The Nigerian agricultural sector is to a crossroads, which urgently requires modernization in the entire value chain to guarantee the nation’s food and nutritional needs.

The FAO representative in Nigeria and Ecowas, Dominique Koffy Kouacou, explained the vision of the general manager of FAO to support the actors through the chains of agricultural value through innovative technologies all over the world.

He stressed that the Digital Village Initiative (DVI) aligns with the vision of the government to digitally transform the country’s agrifood systems.

“We have the shared vision to optimize resources, improve market access, strengthen supply chains and equip the farmers essential digital skills. Through data analysis, precision agriculture, intelligent agriculture techniques and mobile solutions, we will increase productivity, minimize waste and build resilience from climate change,” said Kuacou.

The prospects of the involvement of youth

Speaking of exploiting the ICTs for development for the agricultural transformation of Nigeria, Professor Francisca Oladipo, deputy chancellor of Thomas Adventy University Oko, discussed solutions with quick victories that guarantee that “intermediaries are eliminated and farmers are connected directly to buyers and also with access to digital loan platforms”.

He added that “digital agri -food hubs encourage the participation of young people, making agriculture more innovative and sustainable”.

Professor Faith Ibrahim, of the Federal University of Technology, Minna, underlined the need to exploit the youth population of Nigeria for the initiative to be successful.

He reiterated that “today’s young people are guided by technology; with the platform for digital agriculture available, we would see a push to accept the young people and the desire to be part of this new perspective in agriculture, the technological perspective”.

For his part, Professor Olumiyiwa Jayeobo, president of the Association of the Dean of the Faculties of Agriculture in the Nigerian universities has reiterated that “we must use what they attract them. They are absorbed in Facebook, Instagram, Twitter (X), Tiktok, therefore the best way to capture them and involve them in the transformation of the transformation of agriculture”.

Other speakers, such as Dr. Mustapha Popola, Project Lead, have highlighted the adoption of “skillnovate” models to improve the skills of the workforce in the agri -food sector, guide the innovation of human capital and establish incubation programs for new businesses and valid minimum products (MVP).

The initiative tries to combine the interested parties for the implementation without continuity, the sustainability and the usability of the effective platform.