Esther Kimani, a Kenyan innovator, has been awarded the Ksh8.3 million Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation for her groundbreaking invention aimed at combating crop pests and diseases across Africa.
Ms. Kimani, together with her team, developed a solar-powered tool integrated with AI and machine learning-enabled cameras. This innovation swiftly detects and identifies agricultural pests and diseases, significantly reducing crop losses for smallholder farmers by up to 30% and boosting yields by as much as 40%.
The Royal Academy of Engineering awarded Ms. Kimani KSh8.3 million for her early pest and disease detection device, recognizing its capability to provide real-time alerts within five seconds of an infestation. These alerts include tailored intervention suggestions and also notify government agricultural officers, aiding broader agricultural management efforts.
Speaking after receiving the award, Ms. Kimani revealed that she conceived the idea, known as Farmer Lifeline Technologies, during her studies in Computer Science at the University of Eldoret. Inspired by the losses faced by farmers in her village of Tigoni, Nyandarua County, she set out to find a solution that would help farmers reduce losses and optimize production.
The solar-powered device utilizes advanced computer vision algorithms to detect and identify crop pests, pathogens, and diseases, transmitting alerts via SMS—an affordable alternative to traditional detection methods. Ms. Kimani leases the devices for just $3 per month, making it accessible for smallholder farmers.
Currently serving 5,000 farmers in central Kenya, Ms. Kimani plans to expand her reach to five more counties by the year’s end. Her goal is to combat the significant challenge where five million Kenyan smallholder farmers lose an average of 33% of their crops annually to pests and diseases, achieving an impressive 97.5% accuracy rate with her innovation.
With her prize winnings, Ms. Kimani intends to further develop her technology to benefit more farmers, contributing to food security efforts in Kenya and beyond.
