The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening weather and climate information services to boost agricultural productivity, resilience and food security in Nigeria.
The Director-General/CEO of NiMet, Professor Charles Anosike, said this in his goodwill message at the National Strategic Dialogue on the Preparation of the AGROW Component 2.2 – National Implementation Strategy and Digital Agriculture Architecture, organised by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security under the World Bank-supported AGROW Project.
Anosike said climate variability, changing rainfall patterns and extreme weather events were increasingly affecting agriculture, making timely and reliable climate information essential for farmers.
He noted that NiMet provides Seasonal Climate Predictions, weather updates, agrometeorological services and impact-based advisories to support decisions on planting, water management and agricultural inputs.
According to him, “digital agriculture is a critical pathway for translating climate information into practical, farm-level action.”
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He highlighted NiMet’s partnerships with Tomorrow.io and MTN on the Digital Climate Advisory Services (DCAS) System, which delivers location-specific weather advisories to farmers through mobile SMS, as well as its collaboration with AIM for Scale to integrate AI-based Weather forecasting into advisory systems.
“Digital agricultural services must be responsive to the realities of farmers, including language, literacy, connectivity, affordability and gender inclusion.” He said
The NiMet chief stressed the need for accessible and affordable digital services, noting that collaboration with extension workers, telecommunications companies, community radio and farmer organisations would enhance last-mile delivery.
He also emphasised the importance of addressing farmers’ needs, including language, literacy, connectivity and gender inclusion, in developing climate services.
Anosike commended the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, for promoting climate-smart agriculture and urged stakeholders to develop an inclusive and measurable roadmap for integrating weather and climate services across the agricultural value chain.
He reaffirmed NiMet’s readiness to provide the technical expertise needed to advance digital agriculture, strengthen climate resilience and support food security in Nigerian forecasting into digital advisory systems.
