Niger

Despite being a landlocked country with little arable land for farming, around 80% of people in Niger rely on agriculture and livestock for their livelihoods. Farmers and herders face significant challenges, including frequent droughts and floods, poor soil quality, and lack of access to seeds and fertilizers.

About 60% of Nigeriens live below the poverty line and access to sustainable sources of food is limited. Nearly half of all children in Niger suffer from malnutrition.

In the Sahel region of West Africa, livestock accounts for 40% of the agricultural GDP, but climate shocks make decent pasture harder to find. To solve this problem, we created the Pastoral Early Warning System, an innovative system of real-time alerts that help herders find better grazing land.

Our system uses satellite imagery of biomass and water combined with mobile surveys of people on the ground who share market prices, trends in animal diseases, and reports of bushfires. We analyze the data and send alerts to approximately 100,000 herders via radio, text, and community bulletins.