Enhancing Agricultural Extension Services in Nigeria Leveraging Digital Technology

EasyChair Preprint 15786

Abstract

Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa, with an estimated population of over 200 million people and arable agricultural land. Agriculture contributes to the nation's economy, contributing about 25% to its GDP. It is a source of livelihood for many youths, including women, and provides jobs for about 70% of its workforce. Despite the potential to grow the nation's economy through agriculture and the diversity of its economy from oil, the agriculture sector has suffered setbacks notable to mention in its extension services. Most farmers in Nigeria are smallholder farmers with limited resources such as access to finance, improved seeds, poor extension services, and digital technology to scale their farming businesses. To respond to some of the challenges the average smallholder farmer faces, the United States Agency for International Development, through its Agricultural Extension and Advisory Services Activity in Nigeria, identified digital technology as a tool to unlock the bottlenecks experienced by smallholder farmers in extension services. Extension services in agriculture are a vital part of the value chain because they help farmers improve their farming practices by incorporating innovations and best farming practices. Digital extension transforms the agricultural landscape by replacing old farming practices with cutting-edge innovations that deliver knowledge right to the farmer's doorstep while bridging the vast divide between extension agents and the communities they serve. The use of digital technology such as video-enabled extension and digital apps in agricultural extension helps to enhance the overall experience of the average smallholder farmer by promoting precision agriculture, facilitating outreach, and providing extension and advisory services to the vast amount of farmers, enhancing productivity and income.

Keyphrases: Agriculture, Extension Services, Women, Youth, digital technology, smallholder farmer

@booklet{EasyChair:15786,
  author    = {Ochuko Piserchia and David Edimu},
  title     = {Enhancing Agricultural Extension Services in Nigeria Leveraging Digital Technology},
  howpublished = {EasyChair Preprint 15786},
  year      = {EasyChair, 2025}}