Driving Farmer-Centered Digital Transformation in African Agriculture

ICRISAT and KALRO Lead Stakeholder Workshop on Advancing Digital Agriculture in Nairobi

The event, organized by the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), in collaboration with the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) under the aegis of CGIAR initiative on digital innovation, brought together a diverse group—including government representatives, NGOs, private companies, and farmer collectives—to explore how digital agriculture can revolutionize the region’s farming practices.

Discussions focused on boosting the adoption of digital tools to improve productivity, climate resilience, and market access for smallholder farmers across the continent. A key highlight was the launch of the Plantix app in Swahili jointly by ICRISAT and Plantix with support from CGIAR initiative on digital innovations, offering farmers real-time pest and disease diagnostics, crop management advice, and weather updates.

Dr Stanford Blade, Director General-Interim & Deputy Director General-Research, ICRISAT, underscored the importance of digital innovation for Africa’s agricultural future.

“Digital Agriculture is gaining significant momentum globally, driven by advances in AI, machine learning, and precision farming technologies. These innovations are reshaping agriculture and hold enormous potential for smallholder farmers across Africa, enhancing productivity, expanding market access, and promoting sustainability through data-driven decision-making,” said Dr Blade. The United Nations highlights food security as a critical area that will be significantly disrupted by digital technologies, with Digital Agriculture playing a key role in accelerating the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Dr ML Jat, Global Director of ICRISAT’s Resilient Farm and Food Systems Program, acknowledged that despite significant technological advancements, challenges such as inadequate information systems and low digital literacy continue to persist.

“Digital Agriculture has the potential to bridge the gap between innovation and smallholder farmers. By empowering farmers with easy-to-use precision tools and data-driven insights, we are helping to build more resilient and sustainable farming systems,” said Dr Jat.

Regarding Transforming Smallholder Farming Systems, discussions centered on how high-tech tools, such as drones, AI-powered predictive tools, IoT devices, and remote sensing, can improve irrigation, pest management, and crop yields. Experts also highlighted the role of digital mobile tools and ICTs in providing climate-smart agricultural advice and enhancing market access for farmers. The workshop also addressed the need for innovative business models, public-private partnerships, and policies to support the scaling of Digital Agriculture in Africa. Topics included carbon farming, blockchain technology, and the importance of data privacy and farmer profiling.

The goal was to identify investment opportunities, define policy needs, and create a collaborative community of Digital Agriculture practitioners. The workshop also aimed to define research and development (R&D) areas that would benefit from multi-stakeholder collaboration in the digital space.

“The success of this workshop underscores the growing recognition of Digital Agriculture as a key driver of agricultural transformation in Africa and the Global South,” shared Dr Salim Kinyimu, Director of Information and Communication Technology, KALRO. “In collaboration with ICRISAT, KALRO will continue to work with stakeholders to ensure that smallholder farmers benefit from the latest technological advances.”

ICRISAT and KALRO Lead Stakeholder Workshop on