Strengthening Food Security Through Digital Agriculture and Youth Empowerment in Nigeria
Augustine I. Wonor , City University, Cambodia Gloria Chigbu , Anchor University Lagos, Nigeria Maryjane Y. Oghogho , City University, Cambodia O.M.C Osazuwa , City University, CambodiaAbstract
Food security is a critical component of national development, with clear links to agricultural output, youth involvement, and technological innovation. Despite Nigeria's enormous agricultural potential, food poverty remains due to poor youth engagement, limited digital adoption, and ineffective institutional coordination. This study investigates how digital agriculture strengthens food security in Nigeria by increasing youth participation, creativity, and agricultural transformation, utilising the Sustainable Livelihood Framework (SLF) as a theoretical framework. The study uses a descriptive and analytical research design, relying solely on secondary data from peer-reviewed publications, policy documents, and worldwide databases. Comparative analyses were undertaken on worldwide experiences such as India's Digital Agriculture Mission, Kenya's M-Farm, and Brazil's AgroSmart, as well as Nigerian AgriTech platforms such as ThriveAgric, FarmCrowdy, Crop2Cash, and Hello Tractor. The findings show that digital agriculture improves human, financial, and social capital through increased digital literacy, Agri-FinTech inclusiveness, and AI-driven innovation, increasing the four dimensions of food security: availability, access, utilisation, and stability. The study concludes that coordinated digital inclusion, infrastructural investment, and gender-responsive innovation are critical for long-term food system resilience. It contributes to knowledge by demonstrating how digital agriculture improves food security through youth empowerment in Nigeria.
Keywords
Food security, digital agriculture, youth empowerment
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