The Nigerian government is empowering famers in the North East states with smart digital tools to ensure improved productivity, yield and services to Nigerian farmers.
The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Pantami, unveiled the the National Adopted Village for Smart Agriculture (NAVSA) on Tuesday in Gomber State.
According to him, the initiative aligned with the need to empower and groom digital natives that can transform the country into a regional and global digital powerhouse in various sectors of the economy,
He added that The NAVSA programme was in line with the blueprint of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy for a Digital Nigeria developed by the ministry in line with demands of the digital age.
He noted that agriculture is currently being practiced as a business driven by digital technologies and innovation.
NAVSA is built as a digital platform to connect the agriculture ecosystem to deliver services to farmers more productively and efficiently.
READ ALSO: US Embassy, Ekiti Govt. Partner For Production Of Milk
Participants of smart agriculture programme were empowered with smart devices, seed fund, know your farmer, kyf- farmers’ identification, digital skills, Internet connectivity, digital business ideas, and continuous reinvestment model.
Pantami stated that a digitalised agricultural sector in Nigeria holds great potential for wealth generation, job creation, and attracting foreign exchange into the country.
He cited Netherlands as an example, saying with a population of just about 17 million people and an area of 42,000 square kilometers, th country is the second-largest exporter of agric products in the world.
“Netherlands agricultural approach is smart and makes significant use of digital technologies,” Pantami said.
He added, “We want to do this in Nigeria and the National Adopted Village for Smart Agriculture is an important step in this process.”
