The County Government of Nakuru has unveiled a mobile app. that will enable farmers to access timely agricultural information towards improving agricultural productivity and promoting climate-resilient farming.
The new ‘Farmer-Chat’ application will enable farmers to obtain weather updates, crop advisories, and real-time agricultural information directly through their mobile phones, bringing extension services closer to them.
According to County Chief Officer for Agriculture, Eng. Margaret Kinyanjui, the platform will enable farmers to get detailed information on crop diseases, pests, soil management, and other farming challenges and receive guidance on appropriate interventions.
Engineer Kinyanjui explained that the platform launched by the devolved unit in partnership with CARE Kenya and Digital Green will also provide advice on crops suitable for a farmer’s location, helping them make informed decisions based on local environmental conditions.
The official explained that the ‘Farmer-Chat’ will further complement conventional agricultural extension services by providing farmers with reliable information whenever they need it.
“The mobile app is an important addition to our agricultural extension system because it gives farmers an opportunity to access reliable information without having to wait for an extension officer to visit their farms,” she added.
The Chief Officer pointed out that combining digital technology with existing extension services would enable Governor Susan Kihika’s Administration to reach more farmers, respond to emerging challenges posed by climate change faster, and support them to make informed decisions that improve productivity and incomes.
While encouraging farmers to embrace the technology, Engineer Kinyanjui emphasized the county’s commitment to continue strengthening physical extension services to ensure that digital tools complement rather than replace direct engagement between farmers and agricultural officers.
She noted that the initiative would complement the county’s extension services and support implementation of the Nakuru County Agroecology Framework, which promotes soil health, climate-smart agriculture, and increased food production.
The application is expected to strengthen farmers’ ability to respond to emerging agricultural challenges by providing information on crop diseases, pests, weather conditions, and recommended farming practices through an easily accessible digital platform, Engineer Kinyanjui added.
‘FarmerChat,’ the official, elaborated, is an artificial-intelligence-powered agricultural advisory platform developed by Digital Green to provide farmers with timely, localized, and practical information.
Farmers can interact with the application through text, voice, or photographs, making it accessible to users with different levels of literacy and digital experience.
A farmer can, for instance, type or record a question about a crop problem, upload a photograph of an affected plant, or provide location information when seeking advice on what to plant.
The system processes the information and uses agricultural knowledge, local conditions, and weather data to provide guidance relevant to the farmer’s circumstances.
The application provides information on crop diseases and pests, fertilizer and pesticide use, weather and irrigation, livestock management, and different crop enterprises. Its location-based functionality is designed to make recommendations more relevant to local climatic and agricultural conditions.
The platform also supports multilingual and voice-based interactions, features that can help overcome language and literacy barriers that sometimes limit farmers’ access to conventional agricultural information.
‘FarmerChat’ is designed to complement traditional agricultural extension systems rather than replace agricultural officers.
The technology can provide farmers with immediate access to basic information while allowing extension officers to concentrate on cases requiring specialized technical advice or physical visits to farms.
Engineer Kinyanjui observed that the involvement of CARE Kenya and Digital Green adds technical and development expertise to the county’s digital agriculture agenda.
CARE Kenya is part of the global CARE confederation, a humanitarian and development organization working to address poverty and inequality and strengthen the resilience and livelihoods of vulnerable communities.
CARE is working with government, communities, and development partners in areas including food and nutrition security, climate resilience, livelihoods, gender equality, and economic empowerment.
Its partnership in the FarmerChat initiative complements Nakuru’s efforts to improve agricultural extension and strengthen farmers’ access to practical information.
Digital Green, on the other hand, is an international development organisation that uses digital technology, artificial intelligence, data, and locally generated knowledge to strengthen agricultural and rural development systems.
The organization works with governments, development partners, and communities to make agricultural knowledge more accessible to smallholder farmers.
Through ‘FarmerChat’, it seeks to combine technology with agricultural expertise to provide farmers with practical information while strengthening existing extension systems.
The platform enables farmers to seek information through text, voice, and images, allowing them to raise questions about crops, pests, diseases, livestock, weather, and farming practices. Its use of digital technology is intended to help extension systems reach more farmers efficiently.
The Chief Officer assured that the ‘FarmerChat platform’ will help Nakuru County farmers to reduce reliance on guesswork when making important farm decisions, adding that a farmer whose crops develop unusual symptoms, for example, could use the application to seek preliminary guidance on possible causes and recommended interventions.
She added that farmers preparing for a planting season could use the platform to obtain information on suitable crops, weather conditions, and recommended production practices, potentially improving planning and productivity.
The Chief Officer stated that access to timely weather information is particularly important as farmers contend with increasingly unpredictable weather patterns.
She said such information can support decisions on planting, irrigation, crop protection, and other farm operations while helping farmers adapt to climate-related risks.
The digital advisory service is also expected to ease pressure on conventional extension systems by providing farmers with information at any time, particularly in areas where extension officers serve large numbers of farmers.
Agriculture remains a major economic activity and source of livelihoods in Nakuru County, with farmers engaged in crop production, livestock keeping, fisheries, horticulture, and floriculture.
The county produces major food crops, including maize, beans, Irish potatoes, and wheat, alongside fruits and vegetables, while dairy farming and other livestock enterprises remain important components of the agricultural economy.
Nakuru County has continued to invest in agricultural extension, mechanization, irrigation, horticulture promotion, soil testing, and research as part of efforts to increase farm productivity, strengthen food security, and improve household incomes.
The rollout of FarmerChat adds another layer to the Nakuru County Government’s efforts to modernize agricultural extension by providing individual farmers with direct access to agricultural information through their mobile phones.
The initiative further supports implementation of the Nakuru County Agroecology Policy and its implementation framework, which promote sustainable and climate-resilient food systems through practices that improve soil health, conserve natural resources, strengthen biodiversity and help farmers adapt to climate change.
By providing information on climate-smart production practices, soil management, crop selection, and other sustainable farming methods, the digital platform is expected to contribute to the county’s broader agroecology and food-security agenda.
The County Government of Nakuru has reaffirmed its commitment to working with development partners, agricultural experts, and farmers to expand access to modern technologies as part of Governor Susan Kihika’s agenda of transforming agriculture, empowering farmers, strengthening food security, and improving livelihoods across the county.
By Esther Mwangi and Caroline Nyakio
