2023-06-06 22:18:31
Climatic hazards, training of agricultural professionals or mechanization, agritech or agrotechnology develops new tools to provide solutions to the problems facing the sector in Africa. Spotlight on three African start-ups specializing in agrotechnology, all present at Gitex Africa, the largest technology fair on the continent, which was held in Marrakech last week.
Francis Dossou Sognon directs Agrosphere. With its agronomic and digital expertise, the start-up supports cooperatives and small farmers in the field, in Côte d’Ivoire, Togo and Benin: ” There are manufacturers who need raw materials. Soy, cocoa, coffee, cassava, whatever. We can take that need and we can find cooperatives that are able to meet those needs. Et ensuite, on will identify these cooperatives, train them on best practices, so that the product ultimately meets the expectations of manufacturers or the market. The goal is for the cooperative to eventually become autonomous ».
Mounir Jamai is the head of the Daki Farm project, which offers small and medium-sized farmers two applications: one allows them to follow digital agricultural training in the local language, the other to irrigate crops according to the needs of the plants, and thus preserve water resources: Every morning, the farmer will receive a notification explaining how to irrigate his crops, how long a day, and if he needs to fertilize any crops. We really have a digitized farmer in the mobile phone. I offer you the example of those who have olive farms. With the advent solar panels, they will open the valve in the morning and cut it off in the evening, whereas the olive tree needs periods of drought to develop its root system so that it does not just produce leaves and produces a little fruit. And the system will make it possible to irrigate according to their needs and at the same time save money. »
► Read also : African agrotech, an opportunity for agriculture on the continent
Self-sufficiency in sight
Agritech entrepreneurs face another challenge, that of mechanization. In Europe, on average, there are 200 tractors per 100 km2, in Africa, there are only 9. It is to overcome this lack that Hello Tracter was founded in 2014. The start-up connects small farmers with tractor owners to improve agricultural yields. Joorst Muller is project manager for Hello Tractor: “ We want to improve the lives of farmers through the best agricultural platform possible. More than half of the 650 000 farmers we work with gained access to mechanization for the first time through Hello Tractor, car it is financially advantageous, reliable and safe. This helps them grow, produce more and ensure food security for their families and communities. »
Agriculture represents one of the main sources of income in most countries of the continent. According to Gitex participants, integrating the solutions offered by agritech might be the gateway to food self-sufficiency in Africa in the years to come.
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