As part of efforts to boost agriculture and agribusiness in Ebonyi State and its environs, the Federal College of Agriculture at Ishiagu in Ivo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State has acquired drones to enhance precision agricultural practice in the College and by extension the entire Ebonyi State.
Speaking during the 36th Matriculation ceremony of the College held in Ishiagu, Michael Okoronkwo, a PhD holder and the provost of the Federal College of Agriculture, Ishiagu, said that the drones would be useful in landing mapping, data management and other practical areas in precision agriculture.
He explained that the Administration of the College had been undertaking training of manpower in various vocations and agribusiness such as fish farming and cassava production, saying, “About 1,000 entrepreneurs from the South-East have benefited from the training.
“The College is charged, among other things, to train middle-levelled manpower and carry out cutting-edge research in various areas of agriculture, agro-based issues and development. We have implemented a Wireless Internet Facility in the College by Tenece Wireless. Staff and students of the college community have free and high-speed access to the World Wide Web for research and collaboration with institutions across the globe.
“We currently acquire drones for Precision Agriculture practicals in agricultural land mapping, nutrients and soil moisture data management, scouting for pests and diseases management, fertilizers and pesticides application and yield counts.
“We have also concluded our partnership with Sentinel Satellite Remote Sensing data-driven agriculture. These are new frontiers in agriculture and driving the needed change in agricultural productivity improving yields and reducing cost, providing our students the opportunity to be at the front of recent technology advancements in Agriculture in the world leveraging on Data Analytics, Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence.
“These are novel projects and positions in the school as adept in current trends in digital and precision agriculture technologies in terms of completeness of vision and execution, equipping the students with the knowledge of current trends in agriculture making them indispensable in workplaces and spheres.”
