AI-Powered Drought Prediction System for Africa

chevron-icon
Back
Top
chevron-icon
project-presentation-img
Nwobi Onyeka
Project Owner

AI-Powered Drought Prediction System for Africa

Expert Rating

n/a
  • Proposal for BGI Nexus 1
  • Funding Request $37,000 USD
  • Funding Pools Beneficial AI Solutions
  • Total 4 Milestones

Overview

This project aims to develop an AI-powered drought prediction system specifically designed for Africa's unique climate and agricultural landscape. By leveraging satellite imagery, IoT sensor networks, machine learning models, and MeTTa (Meta Type Talk), the system will deliver early drought warnings. These predictive insights will enable farmers, policymakers, and humanitarian organizations to make informed, proactive decisions, ultimately improving water resource management, enhancing food security, and bolstering resilience against climate change. The six-month initiative, structured into four key milestones, will be implemented with a budget of $37,000.

Proposal Description

How Our Project Will Contribute To The Growth Of The Decentralized AI Platform

This project supports the BGI mission by improving food security and climate resilience. It focuses on helping people, ensuring fair access through open-source tools, and making predictions clear and reliable with MeTTa. By giving real-time warnings, it helps communities manage water better and prepare for droughts effectively.

Our Team

Our project team combines expertise in project management, data science, software development, field operations, and research to deliver an AI-powered drought prediction system. Project managers oversee execution, data scientists develop accurate models, developers build the system, field experts ensure real-world applicability, and researchers refine insights. Their combined skills ensure a scalable, high-impact solution for drought prediction and climate resilience in Africa.

AI services (New or Existing)

AI-Powered Drought Prediction System

Type

New AI service

Purpose

Predict droughts in Africa and provide early warnings to farmers policymakers and NGOs.

AI inputs

Satellite data (rainfall soil moisture vegetation health) IoT sensor data (temperature humidity water availability) and historical weather patterns.

AI outputs

Drought predictions with >85% accuracy early warning alerts (at least 3 months in advance) and visualized insights via a user-friendly dashboard.

Machine Learning-Based Drought Prediction

Type

New AI service

Purpose

Analyze historical and real-time climate data to identify patterns and predict droughts accurately.

AI inputs

Processed datasets from historical weather records real-time satellite imagery and IoT sensor readings.

AI outputs

Trained AI models capable of predicting droughts with high accuracy validated against historical drought events.

MeTTa-Enhanced AI Model for Drought Prediction

Type

New AI service

Purpose

Improve the interpretability and adaptability of AI drought prediction models.

AI inputs

Machine learning models diverse and complex climate datasets.

AI outputs

More robust and adaptable AI models with enhanced interpretability ensuring better decision-making for drought mitigation.

AI-Driven Dashboard for Drought Prediction

Type

New AI service

Purpose

Provide an interactive and user-friendly platform for farmers policymakers and NGOs to access drought predictions and insights.

AI inputs

AI-generated drought forecasts and real-time climate data.

AI outputs

Visualized drought risk levels early warning alerts and actionable insights for stakeholders

The core problem we are aiming to solve

WHY AFRICA?

Africa faces severe droughts that threaten agriculture and food security, with outdated prediction methods leading to delayed responses. An AI-powered system can provide early warnings to mitigate these challenges. Nigeria is an ideal location due to its frequent droughts, reliance on agriculture (25% of GDP), and active climate adaptation initiatives. Its weather monitoring networks, satellite data, and diverse geography enable effective testing and scalability across Africa.

Our specific solution to this problem

We propose an AI-driven drought prediction system that leverages multiple data sources and computational techniques to provide accurate, real-time drought forecasts. This system will support farmers & the community with timely and actionable insights, improving water management.

  • Satellite Data: The system utilizes satellite imagery to monitor environmental variables such as rainfall, soil moisture, and vegetation health, providing a large-scale view of drought trends.
  • IoT Sensors: Ground-level sensors collect real-time data on temperature, humidity, and water availability. These high-resolution readings complement satellite data, improving accuracy.
  • Machine Learning Models: Advanced AI models analyze historical and real-time data to detect patterns and predict droughts with high precision. Continuous training ensures adaptation to new climate trends and regional variations.
  • MeTTa: This enhances model interpretability and adaptability, allowing the system to process complex datasets and adjust predictions as conditions change.
  • User-Friendly Dashboard: A web-based platform will offer interactive visualizations, real-time alerts, and automated reports, ensuring accessibility for farmers, NGOs, and the community. Users can customize data views based on location and risk factors.

The system is designed for scalability, enabling deployment across multiple African regions. With modular infrastructure and cloud-based deployment, it adapts to diverse climates and agricultural needs.

Was there any event, initiative or publication that motivated you to register/submit this proposal?

select_option

Proposal Video

Placeholder for Spotlight Day Pitch-presentations. Video's will be added by the DF team when available.

  • Total Milestones

    4

  • Total Budget

    $37,000 USD

  • Last Updated

    24 Feb 2025

Milestone 1 - Research Feasibility Study & Data Collection

Description

This milestone will focus on conducting extensive research into integrating MeTTa with existing machine-learning frameworks for drought prediction. Additionally the project team will establish data-sharing partnerships with satellite imagery providers IoT vendors and meteorological agencies. Historical and real-time datasets will be compiled for further analysis.

Deliverables

Deliverables include a comprehensive research report on AI and MeTTa integration feasibility analysis detailing potential risks signed agreements with satellite and IoT data providers and the initial dataset collection from multiple sources.

Budget

$9,000 USD

Success Criterion

Success will be determined by the completion of the feasibility study confirming project viability, establishment of key partnerships, and compilation of high-quality, diverse datasets suitable for AI model training.

Milestone 2 - Data Preprocessing Model Development & Training

Description

This milestone focuses on cleaning preprocessing and structuring the acquired data for AI model development. Machine learning algorithms will be designed and trained to identify patterns and predict drought conditions. MeTTa will be integrated to enhance interpretability and adaptability of the models.

Deliverables

Deliverables include a preprocessed and structured dataset suitable for model training AI model architecture incorporating MeTTa trained and validated AI models with performance benchmarks and an accuracy evaluation report with performance metrics.

Budget

$10,000 USD

Success Criterion

Success will be measured by having a fully cleaned and structured dataset, a well-designed AI model optimized for high prediction accuracy, and validation results demonstrating over 85% accuracy in test environments.

Milestone 3 - Dashboard Development & Pilot Deployment

Description

This milestone will involve developing a user-friendly interactive dashboard for visualizing real-time drought predictions. The dashboard will be deployed in a pilot region such as the northwest (Sokoto Kano) & northeast (Bauchi Adamawa) regions in Nigeria where local stakeholders will provide feedback on usability and effectiveness.

Deliverables

Deliverables include a fully functional dashboard with data visualization and reporting features deployment in a selected pilot region and a comprehensive report on pilot feedback user experience and system performance.

Budget

$10,000 USD

Success Criterion

Success will be indicated by the completion and testing of a functional dashboard, engagement of at least 500 users including farmers and policymakers, and positive feedback confirming the dashboard’s usability and effectiveness.

Milestone 4 - System Finalization Docs & Scalability Plan

Description

The final phase will involve refining the AI system based on pilot feedback documenting the project and developing a roadmap for wider deployment across additional African regions. Scalability and long-term sustainability strategies will be outlined.

Deliverables

Deliverables include an enhanced AI system with refinements based on user feedback detailed technical and user documentation a comprehensive scalability plan for future expansion and a final project evaluation and impact report.

Budget

$8,000 USD

Success Criterion

Success will be determined by a fully optimized AI system ready for broader deployment, completion of detailed technical documentation and user guides, and a clear roadmap for expansion into at least three additional regions.

Join the Discussion (0)

Expert Ratings

Reviews & Ratings

    No Reviews Avaliable

    Check back later by refreshing the page.

feedback_icon