Across Africa, agricultural producers are turning to digital solutions to get information about farming methods, market access or financial services. By 2022, there were 666 of these solutions operating on the continent, the highest number among all low- and medium-income regions.

Advances in digital devices, such as smartphones, sensors and satellites, connected through the internet and combined with big data analytics, enable solution providers to collect and analyse large amounts of farm data. This is data related to the farmer, the farming site, operations and commercial transactions.

This has raised the possibility that service providers or other third parties could use farm data for their own benefit without the knowledge and consent of farmers. It could even be to the farmers’ disadvantage. So there is a need to strike a balance between safeguarding farm data and using it effectively.

This article presents the findings from a review of personal data protection legislation in Africa and compliance of digital agricultural services with existing regulations on the continent.

Article by Heike Baumüller and Bezawit Beyene Chichaibelu published in The Conservation.