The people of Sokrogbo, a small village in southern Côte d’Ivoire, cannot get their eyes off the T-10 drone. Weighing 25 kg and capable of spraying up to 4.8 liters of pesticides a minute, it is transforming traditional farming practices and attracting throngs of curious spectators.
“I don’t get too close to the drone; I move a little further away,” Amoin Koffi, agronomist and drone pilot, replied. “The villagers are mesmerized. They call it a ‘little plane'” as the kids look on in awe.
The drone has been provided by Investiv, a young Ivorian company whose focus is on precision farming and drone technology. Since its launch in November 2023, Investiv has begun supplying phytosanitary products and the renting of drones to local farmers. This has represented a significant change in how agriculture has been done in the region.
A Game-Changer for Farmers
Banouri Coulibaly, a 60-year-old oil palm farmer, has been using manual backpack sprayers on his 25 hectares of oil palm for decades. He was intrigued but not apprehensive in accepting the drone technology when he saw how effective it was.
“I heard about applying pesticide with a drone, and I wanted to try it out and see if it was indeed better or faster and effective than manual application,” Coulibaly explains. “The drone can fly over the palm trees, which is impossible from the ground. After spraying by the drone, the leaves become greener, and there are fruit bunches of palm nuts.”
In addition, drone spraying is both more effective and cheaper. At Invective’s center, spraying service costs 10,000 CFA francs (€15) per hectare, as opposed to 20,000-30,000 CFA francs (€30-40) for manual sprayers.
Modern Farming with Drones
In a historically conservative farming community, drone technology has made some swift leaps. Hervé Jean-Luc Kouakou Koffi, a 34-year-old producer of cocoa, palm nuts, and vegetables, tells the advantages of this transition.
“Agriculture has moved from the pre-mechanical age to that of mechanical agriculture,” he says. “For us, the younger ones, the machines are cutting the work; they are very fast, completely healthy, and take a very short time. We are spared the health risks related to manual spraying because of the drones.”
A Lot More Than Spraying
Although pesticide spraying falls within the primary operational cadre of the drones by Investiv, aerial photography, topographic surveys, and data collection are also included. Founder Aboubacar Karim talks about the rapid development of these technologies.
“When we started, we used a 10-liter drone that required 80 batteries in one day. Now, we’ve moved to a 50-liter drone that accommodates just six batteries. Technology is accelerating at an astonishing pace; it simplifies logistics and perfects operations,” Karim explains.
A Bright Future for Precision Agriculture
The introduction of drones in Sokrogbo, showcases precision agriculture that will transform the rural farming community. Drones act as facilitators of efficient, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly technology, enabling Ivorian farmers to increase productivity while preserving their health.
With more farmers embracing the innovation, the skies above Sokrogbo are becoming a symbol of social progress as they go towards establishing that even the smallest villages can adopt modern technology to secure brighter prospects.
