Flying farmers and herding via satellite: How tech is reshaping African agriculture

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As resource scarcity, and food insecurity intensify across the African continent, precision agriculture, powered by technologies like the Internet of Things, drones, GPS mapping, remote sensing, and AI, is rapidly transforming the way food is grown, monitored, and managed.

Abdel Aziz Belal, the president of the African Society for Precision Agriculture, and head of Agriculture Application, Soil and Marine Division at National Authority for Remote Sensing and Space Sciences (NARSS), in Egypt, believes that advanced farming technologies can shape a sustainable future for Africa.

Belal says technologies can identify crop changes and their causes, and identify possible solutions. “They can detect pests and estimate yields, and determine agricultural inputs needed by the soil at the right place and time,” he explains.

“Precision agriculture could also help countries that suffer from drought through using advanced technologies such as smart irrigation, which relies on wireless sensors via satellites to determine the amount of water needed by crops and to measure soil moisture content, helping to reduce water wastage,” Belal says.

These techniques are already being used across Africa. In Nigeria, Femi Adekoya, a drone technology entrepreneur known as “the flying farmer’ uses drones to monitor crops and train others in cutting-edge agritech. In Kenya, traditional pastoralists are using satellite technology to find optimal grazing. And Pamela Pali, a senior scientist at the African Plant Nutrition Institute (APNI) in Kenya, is working to ensure that digital tools reach the women who are often left behind in tech-based solutions.

We spoke to them to find out more about their work.

Femi Adekoya: Drones support precision agriculture

Adekoya is a Nigerian agricultural professional who provides innovative technology solutions to farmers and advancing digital and precision agriculture across Africa.

He is the founder of Integrated Aerial Precision, a drone and data technology service provider for the agricultural industry. He also established Precision Field Academy, where he trains and educates professionals on emerging technologies, including UAVs (drones), GIS, remote sensing, artificial intelligence, and other innovative technologies applied to agriculture. His mission is to promote and drive the adoption of digital precision agriculture in Africa while equipping young professionals with the skills they need.

After training as a drone pilot, he decided to use his skills to drive the future of farming in Nigeria.

“The only way to sustainably feed our growing population is for agriculture to embrace smart solutions,” he says.

“By continuously monitoring growth patterns, farmers can make data-driven decisions about fertilizer application, pest control, and disease management. Early detection of stress caused by pests, diseases, or environmental factors allows them to react quickly, preventing significant yield losses,” he says.

“Manual scouting is labor-intensive, time consuming and prone to errors. The drones provide rapid and precise data across large farm areas. They do away with guesswork and ensure that resources are applied only where needed,” he explains.

Pamela Pali: Potential for gender equity

Pamela Pali is a senior scientist at the African Plant Nutrition Institute (APNI) based in Kenya. She has been engaged in several programmes and project evaluations in climate change and adaptation and mitigation, agricultural production, food value chains and gender equality. “Making precision agriculture a reality in Africa requires supporting gender equality among farmers. Women farmers face challenges in both traditional and precision agriculture. These include barriers to access and use of resources, lack of information related to agricultural production, and limited or no decision-making roles,” Pali says.

According to the 2024 Afrobarometer Uganda report, just 16% of registered land is in women’s names. Women are doing the bulk of farming—up to 75% in some regions—but remain largely land insecure. At the national level, they have very little legal ownership, which limits access to credit, resources, and decision-making.

Few women farmers have access to agricultural extension services which significantly impacts innovations and productivity.

Many women lack access to mobile phones, computers, and reliable internet, which hinders their ability to use digital tools and receive timely information on weather, markets, and best practices.

“For example, bundled digital solutions like advisory services, digital finance, and online marketplaces can address multiple barriers women face, but require collaboration across sectors to implement effectively,” Pali adds.

Pali’s work also includes developing monitoring and evaluation systems for precision agriculture projects. “This is complex because existing policies and procedures within an institution govern the degree to which such data can be collected,” she says.

She adds “we must develop precision agricultural tools and platforms that address the specific needs and constraints of women farmers, ensuring usability regardless of literacy or digital skills, and physical limitations”.

Omar Madera: Technology with indigenous knowledge

An app designed for East African pastoralists that blends satellite data, indigenous knowledge, and community input—is helping pastoralists in Kenya to find pasture and water.

“Before we got AfriScout, we were losing a lot of animals,” says Omar Madera, a pastoralist in Samburu county in Kenya. “There were numerous conflicts due to a scramble for scarce water and pasture, but now our lives have changed. We can now figure out where to migrate next. We know precisely where fresh green pasture and water is to be found without coming into conflict with other herders.”

The app was developed by the NGO Project Concern International, which completed a proof of concept by delivering paper based vegetation maps to an Ethiopian pastoral community. After less than a year, nearly 80% of pastoralists reported using the maps for migration decision-making and herd mortality rates dropped by an average of 47%.

Traditional scouting methods like relying on word of mouth, observation from hilltops, or sending scouts on long journeys are increasingly less effective due to rapid changes in climate, shrinking rangelands, and increased competition over resources, explains Tilen Ododa, community engagement associate at AfriScout.

Rainfall patterns have become unpredictable, pasture quality is no longer consistent in traditional grazing zones, and herders are often misled by outdated information.

“This creates inefficiencies, heightens the risk of conflict, and leads to loss of livestock or wasted time and energy,” he says

The tool uses detailed satellite imagery to monitor vegetation health and detect the presence of surface water, helping users track crop conditions and water availability in near real-time.

““This has helped reduce the distance and time spent searching for pasture, saving families an average of nearly three days per scouting trip. Additionally, the app has contributed to improved livestock health, reduced conflict over grazing areas, and supported more informed migration decisions.”

Designed to operate over unreliable 3G networks, each map can be quickly updated and cheaply downloaded so they can be viewed without internet access.

The maps are overlaid on boundaries of customary rangelands, defined and validated by local communities and authorities.

Pastoralists can post geo-tagged alerts for issues like disease, wildlife threats, conflict, or blocked grazing areas. These alerts are then visible to other users in the area.