News in Brief:
– Globacom and the Lagos State government have launched M-Agric, a mobile agricultural platform.
-The service offers farming tips and a lottery with cash prizes, equipment, and internships to encourage youth participation in agriculture and enhance food security.
In a groundbreaking move to bolster agriculture and youth empowerment, telecommunications giant Globacom has partnered with the Lagos State Government to launch M-Agric.
This innovative platform combines educational resources with a lottery incentive to equip young Nigerians with the knowledge and motivation to embark on successful farming ventures. This was disclosed by the telecommunications giant in a statement made available to the press.
Expert farming tips and win big with M-Agric
Essentially, M-Agric subscribers will receive expert agricultural advice tailored to their preferences, delivered directly to their mobile phones. From livestock management to crop cultivation and aquaculture, the platform covers a wide range of topics.
Also, subscribers can participate in a trivia contest with the chance to win substantial cash prizes, essential farming equipment, or valuable internships.
Additionally, to encourage maximum participation, the service is offered free of charge for the first day. Weekly winners are selected based on their trivia performance. Top scorers will progress to the grand prize draw.
Effectively, Globacom, with this initiative, aims to transform farming into a desirable career path for young Nigerians. It also has the added benefit of contributing to the nation’s food security goals.
Gamification in Agriculture
Meantime, it is worthy to note that this is a novel approach to boosting agricultural participation in the country especially for the youth. This is especially so, as the telecommunications giants have jumped on the trend of sports betting to promote agriculture.
A few countries that have adopted similar, if not exact, models to promote agriculture include China and India.
China has various mobile apps and platforms, like Alibaba’s Taobao and JD.com that use gamification to promote agricultural knowledge and practices. India has seen a rise in agricultural-based mobile games and apps.
However, while these examples are not direct matches to the M-Agric model, they nonetheless represent related concepts and practices. The combination of technology, education, and incentives, is expected to aid M-Agric to revolutionise farming in Nigeria
