Roughly 500 million farms of less than two hectares are responsible for producing a third of the world’s food supply. These farms are often in remote areas, in fragmented supply chains and disconnected from markets. They are also among the most vulnerable to increasingly frequent climate shocks.
Digital solutions offer the promise of transforming how these farms operate. Mobile technologies, farmers can access critical information and services, and connect with other market actors, without the time and logistics associated with in-person interactions. With over 1,000 digital agriculture solutions launched globally, this market is valued at $10.7 billion and is expanding rapidly. In Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs), these solutions now have around 50 million active users, covering about 10% of smallholder farming households.
This ecosystem has relied largely on supply-side metrics like number of ‘solution providers’, ‘registered farmers’ or ‘ app downloads’ to understand its scale, growth and impact. While this data is valuable, it provides limited insight into the reach of these services and the actual value they bring to farmers.
Achieving scale in digital agriculture requires funders, government, corporates, digital innovators, and other ecosystem actors to gather accurate and relevant demand-side data from farmers, the primary users and beneficiaries of these services. Understanding the extent of coverage and usage of digital agricultural solutions is essential to ensure inclusivity and reach all segments of farmers, including those traditionally excluded from commercial service offerings, such as women and rural farmers who may encounter additional barriers to access and use.
Presently, there is a lack of both demand-side data and guidelines on how to collect it effectively. To address these gaps, the Gates Foundation, Busara Center for Behavioral Economics, and 60 Decibels partnered to develop a farmer- centric and replicable methodology for generating population-level insights on Digital Farmer Services (DFS). 60 Decibels piloted this methodology in Kenya and Nigeria, two leading markets for digital agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa which collectively account for 45% of digital agricultural solutions in the region.
This report presents insights gathered by the Nigeria National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the World Bank Living Standards Measurement Study (LSMS) team from 1,374 farmers across Nigeria during the 2023-24 agricultural season.
Additionally, 35% were aware of DFS. DFS users are similar to the overall farming population in terms of demographics. We found no significant differences in DFS usage, access, or awareness based on gender or smartphone access. However, farmers under 35 were more likely to use DFS.
35% of farmers accessed these services during the 2023-2024 season. Usage peaked in the first data collection round, after most farmers had finished planting. During this period, farmers primarily sought information on crop management, inputs, and equipment. Digital advisory services are mainly accessed via mobile phones, primarily through phone calls, with 25% of farmers using a combination of direct access and agent-facilitated methods (only 8% relied solely on agents). Among the 65% of farmers who did not use these services, the main barriers were lack of awareness, high costs, discomfort with digital tools, and limited connectivity.
Digital information services are most commonly used during the planting season, with 29% of farmers accessing them at this stage compared to less than 10% later in the season. This could be due to the availability of solutions: while many options in Nigeria provide planting-related information, fewer services address needs later in the season, such as price information.
65% of the farmers we spoke to sell their produce, but only 4% used digital solutions to do so. Adoption of digital market services is constrained by their limited reach: only 18% of farmers are aware of these services, and just 4% have access to them. Non- digital sellers mainly relied on market traders (68%), local buyers (43%), and farmgate sales (18%).
1 in 5 farmers we spoke to received credit to support their farming, but only 5% of all farmers registered for, managed, or made payments to the provider digitally. No farmers reported having insurance during the 2023–24 main agricultural season, though this may reflect a lack of awareness rather than a lack of coverage—some insurance may be bundled with other products or not clearly marketed as such. Awareness of digital financial tools remains low: only 20% of farmers know about digital credit, and fewer than 10% are aware of digital insurance. Among those familiar with credit services, the biggest barriers to using them include perceived high costs, the complexity or difficulty of the platform, and issues with connectivity or discomfort with digital tools.
Among Nigerian farmers using digital farming services, 64% access them exclusively directly through their mobile phones, primarily via phone calls, while only 11% solely rely on digitally-enabled agents with institutional support. The remaining quarter
of DFS users access services both directly on their phones and through agents.
A quarter of all farmers are unaware of DFS. For those who are aware but do not use it, the main barriers are cost concerns, infrastructure and connectivity issues, and a perceived lack of need. These challenges differ by gender and age: men are more likely to cite a lack of need, particularly for market access services, while older farmers are more likely than younger farmers to experience discomfort with digital tools and difficulties using DFS for market access and credit.
Younger farmers (under 35) are more likely to use DFS (48%) compared to older farmers (37%), particularly for information and market access services. Overall, DFS usage among Nigerian farmers shows few differences across segments like gender, education, and commercial orientation, likely due to low overall adoption and limited service penetration.
