Smart Irrigation in Nigeria: A Panacea to Curbing Hunger and Food Insecurity

Abstract

Nigeria has enormous agricultural potential, covering an area of over 923,768 square kilometres. However, despite Nigeria's economy heavily relying on agriculture and petroleum, poverty and hunger still exist. The primary causes of famine and food shortage in Nigeria are insecurity and conflict, poor farming methods, erratic weather patterns, insufficient water management plans, inadequate infrastructure, inadequate government regulations and low agricultural investment. Other concerns include inequality and poverty, food waste and losses after harvest. This project proposes designing an Internet of Things (IoT)-enabled irrigation system that comprises a lithium battery, ESP8266 microcontroller, solar panel, capacitive moisture sensor, and the Blynk smartphone app. The solar panel charges the lithium battery that powers the system, and the charge controller regulates charging and prevents overcharging and deep discharge. The ESP8266 microcontroller evaluates the real-time data gathered from the soil by the moisture sensor to determine whether to activate the DC pump to irrigate the area. The device efficiently irrigates crops based on monitored moisture levels, saving water and increasing agricultural productivity. The Internet of Things (IoT) combines smart sensors, networked devices and cloud computing to continuously gather, process and analyze data, allowing for automation and real-time monitoring, removing human intervention and enabling remote system control, predictive maintenance and instantaneous decision-making. Industry sectors such as agriculture can benefit from IoT's automated responses and data-driven insights to improve safety, increase productivity and optimize operations.