NiMet Advances Digital Climate Hub To Strengthen Weather Services For Nigerian Farmers

The Nigerian Meteorological Agency, NiMet, is advancing a digital climate information platform designed to provide farmers, livestock keepers and agricultural advisers with easier access to location-specific weather and climate data.

Known as the NiMet Data Hub, the platform is being developed in collaboration with the International Livestock Research Institute, ILRI, and Crea2Solutions, and has progressed from the design and mock-up stage to an advanced Minimum Viable Product.

The platform is currently undergoing testing with NiMet’s weather and climate services as part of efforts to improve access to reliable information for agricultural planning and climate-risk management.

Work on the hub commenced in February 2026 under the Climate Services for Youth, CS4Y, and Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, AGRA, programmes. By July, the initiative had advanced to a testable product capable of supporting access to historical, observed and forecast climate information.

The initiative is aimed at addressing some of the challenges limiting the effective use of climate information in Nigeria’s agricultural sector, including fragmented data sources, weak coordination among information providers and difficulties in translating technical forecasts into practical advice for farmers and other end users.

Stakeholder engagements jointly organised by NiMet and ILRI have focused on mapping Nigeria’s agro-meteorological data and advisory ecosystem, identifying gaps in information delivery, strengthening institutional collaboration and improving the communication of climate information to users at the last mile.

The engagements have also placed emphasis on gender and social inclusion to ensure that climate services are accessible to different categories of agricultural producers and communities.

The Data Hub is expected to serve farmers, pastoralists, extension workers, researchers, government agencies and private agricultural advisory providers.

NiMet’s existing resources, including online map rooms and agricultural climate products, are expected to feed into the platform and support the development of location and context-specific agro-weather advisories.

ILRI’s contribution is linked to its broader work on organising research data, developing digital tools and improving access to information for partners and decision-makers.

The initiative aligns with Nigeria’s broader food security and climate-smart agriculture objectives under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

By making weather and climate information more accessible and actionable, the platform is expected to help agricultural producers improve seasonal planning, prepare for climate-related risks and strengthen the resilience of agri-food livelihoods.