Agricultural leaders and digital transformation experts are calling for a fundamental shift in rural advisory services, moving from traditional government-led models to a sustainable “Human API” infrastructure. This call to action follows a high-level continental webinar, “CBAs 2.0: The Era of Human APIs,” hosted by AGRA in collaboration with Extension Africa (EXAF) and the National Agricultural Extension and Research Liaison Services (NAERLS).
The session addressed a critical bottleneck in African food systems: an extension gap where a single agent is often responsible for 10,000 farm families. While over 100 technology solutions currently aim to solve this via apps and SMS, low digital literacy and poor connectivity often leave smallholders stranded at the “last mile”.
The CBA 2.0 model solves this by evolving local Community-Based Advisors (CBAs) into trusted interfaces that bridge high-tech tools and farmer realities.
“The CBA model was conceived to solve a lingering problem in the Nigerian system,” explained Abdul Samad Isah, COO of Extension Africa, during his presentation.
“We are looking at it from a business perspective. The agent can multitask, providing input market linkages and financial services alongside technical advisory”.
The initiative identifies Kaduna State as a primary proof point for regional scaling. By professionalizing the role of the advisor, the consortium is shifting the narrative from extension as a free service to extension as a profitable, market-driven career for youth. This strategy ensures that the rural advisory network remains viable long after donor funding ends.
Dr. Esther Ibrahim, Program Manager at AGRA, emphasized the necessity of this pluralistic approach: “Ensuring these messages reach the farmer effectively requires a system where we identify local individuals who can understand and transfer knowledge. We are moving toward a market-led ecosystem where private sector research meets institutional roots.”
This private sector integration is vital for smallholder productivity. Dr. Afolabi Samson of Premier Tropicana Nigeria Limited noted that by acting as agents for input providers, CBAs ensure that quality seeds and chemicals are no longer a luxury reserved for large-scale outfits but are accessible to every smallholder.
The “2.0” evolution focuses on the digital integration of the human agent. By equipping advisors with tablets and data tools, the project turns them into “human processors” who make complex data digestible for rural communities.
Professor Chris Daudu of NAERLS highlighted the importance of this human element, stating, “By equipping advisors with tablets and digital tools, the project translates complex data into practical and content-specific actions. Technology without human capacity is unused technology.”
The human impact of the initiative is best captured by the story of Fatima Ahmed, a CBA in Kaduna. Initially met with skepticism from male farmers, her success in doubling yields through expert advisory has transformed her into a community leader.
“Today, they are the ones lining up at my door,” said Fatima Ahmed.
“I am no longer just a neighbor to them, I am the business partner who helps them succeed.” Currently, 40% of these advisors are women, proving that targeted recruitment and community trust-building can successfully break cultural norms in the agricultural sector.
The webinar aligns with the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) and the Nigeria Digital Agriculture Strategy, positioning CBAs as core rural infrastructure. AGRA and its partners are now advocating for the formal integration of this model into national extension reform agendas across the continent.
“Consortia are force multipliers,” the panel concluded, noting that the alignment among AGRA, NAERLS, financial institutions, and government multiplied the value of the intervention. Moving forward, the partnership aims to generate the policy and investment interest necessary to turn this successful proof point into a continent-wide reality.
