The European Union (EU), through its space agency ESA, says it is working with Nigeria’s National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) to launch a satellite-based Innovative Agriculture project to drive food security before January 2026.
The EU’s Programme Manager for Agriculture in Nigeria and West Africa, Hugh Briggs, disclosed the development in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
He stated that the project, also known as Copernicus, is designed to leverage space technology and digital tools for agricultural development.
“We have a new project called Innovative Agriculture, also known as Copernicus; it involves the European Union signing a contract with ESA to work directly with NASRDA because they have the technical capabilities,” he said.
Briggs explained that while ESA would provide the technical expertise, NASRDA would handle local execution, focusing on helping smallholder farmers understand their soil conditions, crop suitability, and farming timelines using data collected from space.
Project to begin by end of 2025
According to Briggs, the agencies are in the final stages of preparation and are close to inauguration.
“Currently, ESA is in close contact with NASRDA, and we are at the point of almost inaugurating the project in Nigeria, and this will be coming up maybe at the end of this year, but will not exceed January 2026,” he said.
The EU is funding the initiative, while ESA will work directly with NASRDA to implement the project through capacity-building, satellite analysis, and field technology deployment.
Briggs said the initiative will also involve training young people in rural communities who will support the field rollout of the project.
“NASRDA will also identify and recruit young people within communities, train them in innovative agriculture, provide them with tools, and teach them different applications.
”They will be taught soil testing, how to get the radius, longitude, latitude, and all the technology in terms of mapping their farms, including polygon mapping.
”Most importantly, they will be taught how to use that technology to understand what to plant, when to plant, how to plant, what is suitable for the soil, and what is not suitable for the soil,” he stated.
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As part of the rollout, NASRDA has identified seven ecological zones in Nigeria where demonstration farms will be set up. These farms will be equipped with precision agriculture tools and serve as learning sites for local farmers.
Briggs said these sites would not only showcase how the technology works but would also be used to collect satellite data to inform better decision-making by extension workers and policymakers.
The project will also include the creation of a tech hub at NASRDA to serve as a national centre for training and innovation.
“The second aspect is that we are looking at setting up a state-of-the-art tech centre, like a hub in NASRDA, as part of the project. It will be a training center with modern equipment,” he stated.
The hub will enable continuous learning and serve as a central platform for sharing satellite-derived insights and tools with agriculture stakeholders across Nigeria.
Briggs noted that this initiative is part of a broader EU commitment to use digital and space-based tools to enhance agricultural output in Africa.
