Here’s some uplifting news to start the day.
I came across Verdant today, a mobile-enabled support service that aims to help African farmers boost their yield. It was founded by a 27-year old Nigerian called Nassir Yammama.
Here’s his pitch:
More info here:
We need a lot more of these stories being told about Nigerians and fewer jokers like dammy krane and the davido shitpile hugging the news.
Weather, Soil, Finance, Market…this is undoubtedly a great tool. Hands down to Nassir! However, I do not see it solving an immediate need for rural farmers. An average farmer in Nigeria can not use a mobile phone let alone understand key metrics from a mobile application. Unless there is a Verdant representative that will be willing to manage the tech side of the business or employs a middleman that will sensitise farmers on the implications of certain data. The app is just another app in the app store. Having said that, the good news is that it has been done and through proper implementation, investors can now remotely manage their investments, project growth and of course improve the quality of farm produce.
Note to Nassir, the immediate need of a typical farmer in Africa is Finance and Logistics and this includes how to transport/export their produce locally and internationally with proper preservation of products til it meets the final consumers.