A Review of Irrigation Practices for Improved Agricultural Operations in Nigeria
Authors: *Odo, K.O. And Abonyi, D.O.
DOI Info: http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10441761
ABSTRACT
Irrigation is a vital component of agricultural operations worldwide, particularly in regions with limited rainfall and erratic weather patterns. In Nigeria, where agriculture plays a major role in the economy, irrigation practices are crucial in ensuring stable and enhanced agricultural production. Moreover, the level of investment and abundant water resources ought to have expedited the goals of food self-sufficiency and socio-economic development in the country. This paper is aimed to review the current irrigation practices in Nigeria, discuss potential improvements to optimize agricultural operations and sensors in irrigation, sensor technology and their applications in different aspects of agriculture. The review showed that the major persistent issues that have been hindering the performance of irrigation practice to achieving the set goals were inconsistent government policies, non-implementation of wireless sensor networks and lack of technical know-how among the farmers on irrigation farming system, and untimely financial intervention. In addition, the communication gap between the government and the farmers was responsible for some cases of underutilization and abandonment of large-scale irrigation system. The study concluded that to achieve food security and socio-economic development through irrigation systems practice in Nigeria, there is need to provide proper policy framework, appropriate wireless technologies, and farmers’ awareness and training in using those wireless technologies in order to achieve crop yield.
Affiliations: Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, Nigeria.
Keywords: Irrigation Practice, Precision Agriculture, Wireless Sensor Networks, Socio-economic Development, Nigeria
Published date: 2023/12/30
