Stakeholders Seek Smart, Youth-Centric Agric

Stakeholders have stressed that the primary emphasis should be on the implementation of youth-centric smart agricultural practices.

Speakers at the launch of the Young Tech Farmers (YTF) Club for Secondary school in Lagos, which held at the University of Lagos, Akoka, Lagos, and organised by Sustainable Agro and Hunger Education (SAHE) Foundation and National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS), Lagos State chapter, pledged support to ensure a developed and technology-driven sector in Nigeria.

They said parents have important roles to play by inculcating agric values into their children.

The Director-General, Premier Agribusiness Academy and Soy Value Chain expert, Dr. Francis Toromade, who said there are series of challenges facing technology-driven agriculture, like poor infrastructure, government policies and regulations, and lack of funding, said the programme would set a good pace for Nigeria’s agriculture sector.

 “We are embarking on a journey of developing a nation full of technology-driven farmers. We are going to look at how local departments are reshaping farming practices. Agriculture has a long history of embracing innovations. “From the invention of a simple hoe to the advent of mechanisation, we have witnessed a digital revolution. Various technological tools like IoT sensors, tractors, drones, and more have been incorporated into agriculture, making everything easier for farmers. There are even technologies to determine the nutrients in the soil.

“These technologies help to increase efficiency, enhance productivity, maintain sustainable practices, and secure resilience in the face of agricultural challenges.”

He called on parents to inculcate agricultural values into their children as a means of promoting the society.

Chief Executive, SAHE, Dr. Idongesit Mbaram, emphasised the importance of young people as the bridge between the rich history of agriculture and the innovative potential of technology. She said her organisation stood on the cusp of a new era in agriculture, an era driven by the power of technology and the passion of young minds.

“We seek a nation where agriculture thrives in harmony with nature. This vision gave birth to the SAHE Foundation, a foundation built on the belief that young minds hold the key to unlocking agriculture’s true potential.

“In 2019, a vision was bestowed upon me by God. A vision of young people, not just tending fields, but revolutionising them. The SAHE Foundation was born from that vision, from a deep belief that agriculture holds immense potential, waiting to be unlocked by the next generation.

She said for too long, agriculture has been painted as a traditional, labor-intensive profession, noting that it is on the cusp of a technological transformation. “Drones are surveying crops, robots are weeding rows, and data analysis is optimising yields. This, my friends, is the future of farming, and it’s a future brimming with exciting possibility.