By Chidiebere Ugwu
Leading telecommunications services provider, MTN, says it will partner the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), in disseminating weather and climate information to farmers and other users across Nigeria.
The partnership is coming on the heels of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed in February 2024, between NiMet and Tomorrow.io, a leading weather intelligence company based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, with footprints across Africa and the Middle East. The two organizations are collaborating on a whole range of areas including commercializing weather data, improving accuracy of weather and climate forecasts, and application of artificial intelligence (Ai) in weather and climate intelligence.
Tobechukwu Okigbo, Chief Corporate Services & Sustainability Officer of MTN Nigeria Communications Limited said of the MTN and NiMet partnership; “As the leading provider of communications services in Nigeria, with over 77 million people on our network, we are committed to supporting national initiatives that enhance the quality of life of Nigerians. Therefore, we are open to supporting NiMet’s partnership with Tomorrow.io to make this service available to farmers across Nigeria.
We appreciate the opportunity to work together to improve the nation’s food security and anticipate a fruitful working relationship”.
On his part, the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), Professor Charles Anosike said; “NiMet is the federal government of Nigeria agency responsible for observing, collating, collecting, processing and disseminating all meteorological data and information. The weather and climate data that we generate are useful planning tools for all Nigerians, farmers and other sectoral operators in aviation, marine, oil and gas, construction, academia etc. We are delighted to be partnering MTN Nigeria to support the critical task of disseminating weather and climate information to farmers to boost food security which is a a key component of the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu”.
