Student wins  agriculture challenge

With ICT being one of the fastest-growing sectors, boasting a growth rate of 14.7 percent and employing 1.4 million people, it offers significant potential for rural development. Through the entire agricultural value chain, ICT can boost labour productivity, increase crop yields, and secure better prices for farmers, thus enhancing the quality of life in rural areas.

The recent announcement of the Agriculture, Youth, Technology (AYuTe) Africa Challenge winners at Protea Hotel highlights the transformative role ICT can play in agriculture.

An initiative of Heifer International Uganda, the challenge helps identify agricultural and innovative tech ideas with the potential to address the challenges of smallholder farmers in Uganda, such as strengthening food security and improving production, income, resilience, and access to finance.

AYuTe Africa Challenge, which is held in Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania, Malawi, and Uganda identifies young, creative entrepreneurs who have launched promising new tech solutions to transform African agriculture for smallholder farmers.

189 entries were received in Uganda with the winning idea receiving a Shs35m cash prize.

The winning ideas are deployed with expert advisors who help the winners translate the funding into aggressive business expansion strategies. William Matovu, the country director for Heifer Uganda, emphasised the organisation’s commitment to creating opportunities for young innovators.

AI-powered brooder
Chicks on commercial farms live without their mothers on commercial farms. In Uganda, many poultry farmers rely on primitive methods such as charcoal stoves and local pots or power-hungry heater lamps to provide warmth to chicks in brooders.

Unfortunately, as Peter Okoci experienced firsthand when his mother lost 200 chicks due to overheating, many farmers suffer significant losses during the critical first weeks of a chick’s life due to their fragile nature.

Excessive heat leads to chick dehydration, causing them to consume more water than food. This reduced food intake severely impacts their growth and often results in their demise. Conversely, low brooding temperatures can cause chilling and compromise the flock’s immune system, making them susceptible to diseases.

Moreover, when exposed to extreme cold, chicks tend to huddle together, which can lead to suffocation and increased chick mortality.

For Okoci, a student pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering at Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST), technology offers a solution.

Having witnessed his mother’s heartache when she lost 200 chicks in a single night due to an overheated charcoal heater, Okoci, along with Aaron Etyang, Maureen Nayebare, Peter Beinamani, and Frank Magezi, embarked on a remarkable journey to bridge the gap between technology and poultry farming.

Their collective effort resulted in the creation of the Smart Kuku, an advanced system designed to automatically regulate and maintain the optimal room temperature for chick brooding.

Leveraging sensors and real-time data, this innovation monitors and adjusts temperature levels, ensuring that chicks are constantly kept in a comfortable and healthy environment. This automation significantly reduces the need for continuous manual monitoring, allowing farmers to concentrate on other crucial aspects of their operations.

The Smart Kuku is designed with the well-being of animals in mind and includes an infrared lamp that provides consistent heat, helping young animals maintain their body temperatures to prevent illness and promote their overall well-being. Additionally, the red light feature helps prevent chickens from pecking each other.

Their innovation, recognised as the best at the second edition of the AYuTe Africa Challenge, has now inspired Okoci to expand their project and bring its benefits to more farmers.
 
Nano food preservatives
Samantha Ainembabazi, a fifth-year medical student at Uganda Christian University, was announced the second runner-up position, winning a cash prize of Shs10m, for her groundbreaking invention, Freza Nanotechnology. This innovative technology revolutionises fruit preservation by releasing a safe organic formulation, extending the shelf life of fruits by at least 30 days.

Freza Nanotechnology addresses the critical issue of food wastage and presents a sustainable approach to fruit preservation, benefiting both farmers and consumers alike.

The Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) reports that farmers lose over 30 percent of their crops annually due to various factors, including insects, birds, rodents, pests, mold, and moisture.

The root cause of food wastage often lies in inadequate power supply to maintain the necessary cold chain storage conditions, a lack of knowledge regarding effective preservation methods, and limited access to proper storage facilities.

The persistent issue of unreliable power supply in rural areas further exacerbates the problem, particularly since fruits demand storage under cold conditions, leading to substantial wastage.

Freza is a pioneering bionanotechnology solution that offers a sustainable alternative to refrigeration. It harnesses the power of proteins to freeze at higher temperatures and produce a more robust form of ice. 

Katumwa casts AI to make aquaculture efficient
Willy Katumwa claimed the first runner-up prize, valued at Shs10m, for his AI-driven fish-farming system, poised to revolutionise the fish farming industry with cutting-edge technology.

Katumwa’s drive to make a meaningful impact on the world led him to develop a cost-effective and environmentally sustainable approach to fish farming. His automated system, designed for energy efficiency, can be seamlessly integrated into fish cages, ponds, or tanks. It offers real-time analysis of essential metrics, including average fish weight, fish population, temperature, and oxygen levels.

Farmers can leverage this information to make precise and efficient decisions about when and how much to feed their fish and when to harvest them. This real-time monitoring not only optimises the feeding process but also results in substantial cost savings.

Fact
The recent announcement of the Agriculture, Youth, Technology (AYuTe) Africa Challenge winners at Protea Hotel highlights the transformative role ICT can play in agriculture.

An initiative of Heifer International Uganda, the challenge helps identify agricultural and innovative tech ideas with the potential to address the challenges of smallholder farmers in Uganda, such as strengthening food security and improving production, income, resilience, and access to finance.