NEWS
East Africa smallholder farmers to benefit from AI-powered soil carbon project launched by Boomitra , FtMA
The East Africa smallholder farmers are set to benefit from AI-powered soil carbon project by Boomitra , an international soil carbon marketplace in partnership with Farm to Market Alliance ( FtMA ) in East Africa .
The initiative under the United Nations World Food Programme ( WFP ) Innovation Accelerator will enable FtMA , an alliance comprising six leading organizations in the agricultural industry , provide additional assistance to smallholder farmers to enhance soil health , build climate resilience , and unlock new financial prospects through carbon revenue .
Boomitra uses remote sensing and AI technologies to remotely monitor soil carbon ; nitrogen , phosphorus , and potassium ( NPK ) levels ; and moisture levels across the globe without the need for physical soil sampling . The start-up couples these insights with internationally certified carbon credits , enabling farmers around the world with the knowledge and financial tools to adopt climate smart agriculture practices , such as reduced tillage and mulching with crop residue .
In addition to increasing agricultural yields , preserving biodiversity , and building land equity , these practices sequester carbon – with a goal of offsetting a significant portion of humanity ’ s greenhouse gas emissions .
The collaboration with FtMA in Kenya is just one of the many initiatives led by Boomitra to unleash gigaton-scale soil carbon removal .
This global consortium of FtMA , which includes AGRA , Bayer , Rabobank , Syngenta , WFP , and Yara , operates in Kenya , Tanzania , Rwanda , and Zambia and provides farmers across East Africa with comprehensive support to transition to climate-smart agriculture practices – from farm planning and seed selection to market access .
Together , FtMA and Boomitra have already onboarded 89,000 acres of farmland and equipped farmers with the necessary resources to improve soil health and yields while unlocking carbon revenue opportunities .
Farmer Service Center ( FSC ) model At the heart of the soil carbon project ’ s implementation is FtMA ’ s Farmer Service Center ( FSC ) model . These service hubs connect private and public partners with smallholder farmers , serving an average of 200 farmers per hub .
FSCs act as trusted links to farming communities , improving access to critical resources such as information , quality inputs , affordable financing , storage solutions , market connections , and more . This innovative model places local people at the forefront of the project , ensuring that the solutions and interventions are tailored to the unique needs and challenges of each community .
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