COUNTRY FOCUS: ALGERIA
How smart agriculture
can transform our world
Algeria used to be a Mediterranean farming superpower
but has lost its agricultural glory due to erratic rainfall
and drought. To address this challenge, a major leapfrog
has taken place, enabled by the Internet of Things (IoT)
technology. This, as Ankur Bhan, Founder and Head of
WING Business Line, Nokia, explains, has helped a peach
farmer in Algeria increase his yields, reduce impact on
the environment, and cut irrigation costs.
I
n Africa’s largest country, the
agricultural sector contributes 10% of
the country’s GDP and almost 4% of
the land is dedicated to farming, according
to the Algerian Agriculture Ministry.
The sector is a critical artery to the economy’s
heart, yet it faces severe challenges –
stringent water restrictions are imposed by
the government and farmers are plagued
by drought. Though Algeria has been
implementing modern irrigation system
especially from 2000, it critically needs a
further push to improve the production.
That’s exactly why an IoT trial was well
aligned to Algeria’s agriculture industry.
This smart technology allows users to track
all ‘things’ via computing devices so that
they can send and receive data that informs
decision-making. In this case, for example,
the farmer was able to track soil humidity,
water patterns, salinity and more.
Nokia has created a first of its kind
Worldwide IoT Network Grid (WING) to
support various IoT applications. The
globally distributed, cloud native core
infrastructure and the single IoT platform
is offered as a service and provides global
reach beyond borders and technologies.
This managed connectivity ensures uniform
service levels with lower latency and in line
with local privacy regulations. And more
importantly, we then work with mobile
network operators, who can access our IoT
‘grid’ to offer the service to their customers.
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INTELLIGENTCIO
For this trial, we worked with Algeria’s largest
mobile network operator Djezzy. The farmer
did not need to know IoT, but he brought
his depth of experience in farming while
Nokia and Djezzy provided the technology
and connectivity. It was a win–win scenario,
proving the limitless potential of IoT and its
immense impact on humanity.
How we did it
First, we developed a smart agriculture
solution tailor-made for this use case. Soil
probes were placed along an irrigation line
collecting information about the soil from
a 120cm depth to the surface. Various data
were collected, such as soil temperature,
humidity, volumetric water content, water
evaporation or salinity. These readings were
analysed, and then allowed the farmer to
accurately manage irrigation cycles and
soil nutrition deployment. To underpin the
success of the trial, here’s just a snapshot of
the results:
1. After just one month, the farmer was able
to reduce water consumption by 40% on
a single irrigation line for one hectare
2. By managing and reducing his water
consumption, the farmer increased his
revenues up to 5% per hectare
3. This demonstrates a return on investment
in fewer than two years per irrigation line
– in rural Algeria these savings represent
significant amounts for farmers
The results speak for themselves. The IoT
solution connected the farmer to his crop,
driving efficiency, reducing costs and
unlocking new income. This unprecedented
connectivity transformed his world.
Next steps
This farming trial is a compelling story of
how IoT contributes to raising the income
levels for farmers and enables them to
further modernize their operations.
But not only farmers can benefit from the
solution. Communications service providers
around the world can accelerate their IoT
revenues with limited investment and risk.
Smart Agriculture-as-a-Service is just one
example of how Nokia WING can provide
seamless global IoT services and give access to
best-in-class industry partners, offered through
flexible, pay-as-you-grow business models.
And ultimately, when the time comes, the
capabilities of 5G will push remote sensing
to the next level, opening up currently
unexplored new revenue streams.
Our mission for WING is to shape the future
of agriculture and other industries, to create
a smarter and more connected world. I was
delighted to discuss the trial and I would
encourage people to understand more about
how the trial worked and transformed the
farmer’s life. After all, it’s not every day you
hear about IoT unleashing the potential of a
peach farm in Algeria, is it? n
“
THE AGRICULTURAL
SECTOR
CONTRIBUTES
10% OF THE
COUNTRY’S GDP.
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