In Kenya, poor farming habits, climate change, and poor access to information are notable factors challenging the development of the agriculture sector. The MoU is signed to develop a solution that will help partially address those challenges. 

The DRSRS -Directorate of Resource Surveys & Remote Sensing- and Kenyan agritech AgrVision signed, Thursday (June 9), a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the development of a smart crop monitoring platform. The platform will be powered by artificial intelligence and use satellite imagery. 

According to DRSRS deputy-director Charles Situma the MoU was signed to develop “the right digital tools and usage of advanced data collection and analytics technologies that can help the agricultural sector and decision-makers in the country,  have full visibility and data-driven decisions that enhance food security programs to achieve better sustainable results.”

For Oscar Mwai, AgrVision’s Chief Operations Officer, agriculture should be smart and sustainable. That is why the agritech is committed “to simplifying the remote sensing-based precision agriculture technology, making it universally accessible and practical, by using cutting-edge Ai/ML models and algorithms to analyze big Agri-data that is collected and provide highly-precise information about fields, crops, and forests,” he said. 

Agriculture is one of the most important sectors of the Kenyan economy, contributing about 30 percent of GDP. It is also the main source of livelihood for most Kenyans. However, the sector is undermined by challenges including rising temperatures, changing rainfall patterns, extreme weather events, poor farming practices, the poor quality of inputs, and farmers’ inability to access crucial information.  

Therefore, Charles Situma believes that "a full transformation in the agricultural sector is needed, in which data will play a major role for better, more timely and actionable knowledge is a precursor.”

Ruben Tchounyabe