The Institute of Agricultural Research and Training, Moore Plantation, Ibadan on Tuesday commenced a three days event of the first African Conference on Precision Agriculture.
The African Conference of Precision Agriculture (AfCPA) is an event that aims to connect the science and practices needed to put precision agriculture in action for Africa by providing a pan-African platform focused on highlighting new advances in the fields of experimental and applied precision agriculture.
The event which is an initiative of the African Plant Nutrition Institute (APNI) in partnership with the International Society of Precision Agriculture (ISPA), engaged all stakeholders including scientists, policy-makers, extension staff, crop consultants and advisors, agronomists, and service providers towards the common goal of building the capacity and resilience of African cropping systems.
Speaking with CEOAFRICA, the Director of the Institute of Agricultural Research and Training, Obafemi Awolowo University Ibadan, Prof. Veronica Obatolu said the African Precision Agriculture is an approach aimed at ensuring farm management and productivity maximization.
She said, “The African Precision Agriculture is an approach to farm management that ensures that the land, the seed, and the environment have the exact thing they need to maximize productivity.”
She added that the innovation which makes use of IT software would create sustainability which in turn ensures productivity and environmental protection, stressing that the innovation would help in boosting Africa’s economy.
“it is an innovation in agriculture whereby we use IT software in order to monitor the farm and to decide precisely what the farm need so that there will be sustainability to ensue productivity and environmental protection.
“The people sponsoring this are from morocco and they are very advanced in agriculture and they want to meet with African countries that they can improve their economy through agriculture so that they would be able to use this innovation to enhance the economy of the nation individually and collectively,” she said.
Also speaking with CEOAFRICA, Dr Vincent Aduramigba Modupe, a research scientist on soil fertility at IAR&T, Ibadan, said, the knowledge of precise agriculture helps farmers to apply precise nutrients, management and practices resulting in productivity, sustainability and improve farmers’ livelihood.
On how to improve agricultural practices in Nigeria, Dr.Modupe stressed the need for enabling government policies, real investment in research and mobilisation of farmers through extension services to create awareness.
He said, “There is need for enabling government policies, real investment in research and development, more awareness and mobilisation for farmers through extension services for them to be aware of it.”
According to Dr. Modupe, poor yield is as a result of farmers not having the right knowledge and good agricultural practices, adding that farmers should be empowered in other if farmers are empowered with these, farmers are sure to benefit from them.
“Most farmers do their own thing. Farmers apply fertilizers without testing their crops,” he said.
“We need to be informed on the best agricultural practices or what we call ‘GAP’, good agricultural practices that involves agronomy, soil, crop protection, breed etc.
“If all these things are put together as a holistic package, it will improve value chain and our farmers are going to benefit at the end of the day,” he added.
The event which is being hosted in Nigeria would have the program simulcast to a network of satellite sites throughout Africa, including Cote d’Ivoire, Togo, Burkina Faso, Kenya, Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Ghana, Senegal, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
