A new agricultural technology initiative, GreenFlow, is seeking to use artificial intelligence, soil-moisture sensors and solar power to help African farmers make more informed irrigation decisions as unpredictable weather patterns increasingly threaten agricultural productivity.
In an exclusive interview with AIBase reporter Ahmad Ibriam, the person behind GreenFlow explained that the project was inspired by repeated crop losses experienced by a family member as a result of increasingly unpredictable weather.
“GreenFlow started with my uncle,” the interviewee said. “I watched him lose harvests repeatedly, flooding one season and drought the next. He was an experienced farmer, but the weather was becoming increasingly difficult to predict.”
That experience prompted a fundamental question: “What if farmers could know what their soil actually needs instead of relying entirely on guesswork?”
That question, the interviewee explained, became the starting point for GreenFlow.
Using sensors and weather data to improve irrigation
GreenFlow is being developed around soil-moisture sensors that monitor the actual moisture content of soil. When moisture levels fall below the required threshold, the system can trigger irrigation automatically.
The technology is also being integrated with weather data, with the aim of making irrigation decisions based not only on current soil conditions but also on anticipated environmental conditions.
“We are also integrating weather data so that irrigation decisions can take upcoming environmental conditions into account, rather than simply reacting to the soil at a single point in time,” the interviewee said.
“The goal is simple: help farmers make better irrigation decisions while reducing unnecessary water use.”
Artificial intelligence forms the decision-making layer of the system. Rather than depending on an individual sensor reading, GreenFlow is being designed to analyse multiple sources of information, including soil conditions, weather patterns and farm-specific data.
“AI is the decision-making layer of GreenFlow,” the interviewee explained.
The system is intended to learn from real-world agricultural data and improve its ability to predict when irrigation may be required across different crops and environments.
“As we collect more real-world farm data, we expect the system to become better at making decisions across different crops and environments,” the interviewee said.
GreenFlow qualifies its reported 40% water-saving figure
While GreenFlow has previously reported a 40 per cent reduction in water waste, the interviewee stressed that the figure should not yet be regarded as a definitive, independently validated result.
“The 40% figure came from our early prototype testing, where we compared soil-moisture-based irrigation with conventional watering,” the interviewee said.
“However, it has not yet been established through a large, controlled field study, so I would not present it as a final validated figure.”
The clarification reflects the project’s current stage of development. GreenFlow’s next priority is to conduct structured deployments on working farms, establish appropriate baselines and measure water consumption under controlled conditions.
“One of our next priorities is to deploy GreenFlow on real farms, establish proper baselines and measure water savings under controlled conditions,” the interviewee said.
More than 120 farmers engaged during development
GreenFlow has engaged with more than 120 farmers during its development and validation process. However, the interviewee emphasised that engagement should not be confused with widespread product adoption.
“We have engaged with more than 120 farmers during the development and validation of GreenFlow,” the interviewee said.
“I am careful to distinguish this from product adoption, as most of them have not yet deployed the system on their farms.”
The farmers’ input has nevertheless helped the team identify practical irrigation challenges and refine the technology.
The next phase will involve structured pilot deployments with selected farmers, during which GreenFlow intends to measure water consumption, irrigation frequency, crop performance and operating costs.
Affordability remains central to the product’s development
GreenFlow has yet to finalise its commercial pricing, but the project’s developers say affordability is a key consideration, particularly given the financial constraints faced by many smallholder farmers.
“We are still finalising the commercial price,” the interviewee said. “Affordability is important to us because the farmers we are building for cannot always afford expensive technology.”
The company is therefore developing GreenFlow as a modular system, allowing farmers to begin with essential components and add further capabilities as their needs and financial resources develop.
The approach is intended to make the technology more accessible rather than requiring farmers to commit to a large upfront investment.
Why solar power matters
Solar energy is another important component of GreenFlow’s design, particularly for farms located in areas where grid electricity is unreliable or unavailable.
“Many farms cannot depend on reliable grid electricity,” the interviewee said.
Using solar power, the system can operate independently while potentially reducing the recurring energy costs associated with irrigation.
“It also makes the system more practical for farms in areas with limited electricity access, which is particularly important in rural and underserved communities,” the interviewee added.
Real-world validation is the biggest barrier to scale
Despite having built and tested the technology, GreenFlow is not yet positioning itself as a solution ready for immediate deployment across thousands of farms.
The interviewee identified real-world validation as the project’s biggest current gap.
“At this stage, the biggest gap is real-world validation,” the interviewee said.
“We have built and tested the technology, but scaling responsibly means proving that it works reliably across different crops, soil types and environmental conditions.”
The project also needs to improve hardware reliability, refine its cost structure and establish dependable installation and maintenance support before pursuing large-scale deployment.
“I would rather solve those challenges properly before scaling to thousands of farms,” the interviewee said.
GreenFlow recognised under Climate Action category
One milestone highlighted in the interview was GreenFlow’s recognition as one of the outstanding innovations under the Climate Action category at the Presidential African Youth in AI and Robotics Competition 2025, organised by Ele-Vate AI with support from organisations including AUDA-NEPAD, Afreximbank and BADEA.
The recognition, the interviewee said, is significant but should not be mistaken for the end goal.
“For me, that recognition is encouragement, not the destination,” the interviewee said.
“Our focus now is on moving GreenFlow into more real-world farm deployments, collecting stronger evidence and building partnerships that can help take it from a promising prototype to a scalable agricultural solution.”
AI and robotics could make African agriculture more data-driven
Looking ahead, the interviewee believes artificial intelligence and robotics could significantly reshape African agriculture over the next five years.
“I believe African agriculture will become increasingly data-driven,” the interviewee said.
AI, they argued, could help farmers better understand soil conditions, weather, pests, crop health and water requirements. Robotics, meanwhile, could increasingly take on repetitive activities such as monitoring and targeted irrigation, with the potential to address other labour-intensive tasks over time.
But the interviewee cautioned against framing technological progress as a replacement for farmers themselves.
“But I do not believe the goal should be to replace African farmers,” they said. “It should be to give them better tools to make better decisions.”
The argument is that Africa already possesses generations of agricultural knowledge, and technology should be designed to complement that expertise rather than displace it.
“Africa already has generations of agricultural knowledge,” the interviewee said. “What we need is technology that works with that knowledge and is designed around the realities farmers actually face, particularly as climate patterns continue to change.”
For GreenFlow, that philosophy ultimately defines the project’s ambition.
“That is the future I hope GreenFlow can contribute to: technology that does not replace a farmer’s experience, but gives that experience better information to work with,” the interviewee said.
