First City Monument Bank (FCMB) has unveiled plans to strengthen its agritech strategy by deploying artificial intelligence-powered advisory services in major Nigerian languages, including Hausa, Yoruba, and Igbo, to expand financial inclusion and operational support for smallholder farmers. 

Disclosed in the bank’s Agritech Alumni Impact Report (covering 2018 to 2026), the initiative is to bridge critical information and credit gaps across the agricultural value chain.

The bank highlighted a major structural deficit in African agribusiness: while agriculture accounts for roughly 24 per cent of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), only six per cent of farmers across the African continent currently have access to formal credit channels. 

FCMB is backing scalable AgTech solutions that integrate real-time weather analytics, soil intelligence, and USSD-enabled digital platforms alongside localised AI tools.

Evolving from a startup-focused competition into a broader innovation ecosystem, FCMB’s agritech strategy now focuses on climate-resilient agricultural loans, bundled farm insurance, and digital livestock healthcare solutions. 

In collaboration with international partners such as FMO, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the Mastercard Foundation, FCMB is also supporting the cross-border expansion of Nigerian agritech ventures into key African markets, including Uganda, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, and Kenya.

Source: The Nation News
Image Credit: New Telegraph