The Nigerian Meteorological Agency has started trial runs of a new digital platform that will give farmers and other players in the agricultural sector easier access to weather and climate information specific to their locations.
The platform, known as the NiMet Data Hub, is being developed alongside the International Livestock Research Institute and Crea2Solutions.
NiMet said in a statement on Monday that the project had progressed from its initial design and mock-up stages to a testable Minimum Viable Product.
The agency explained that the platform would bring together historical climate records, monitored weather information and forecasts for use by farmers, livestock producers and agricultural advisers.
The project was launched in February 2026 under the Climate Services for Youth and Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa programmes.
“By July 2026 the project had progressed from early design to a testable product”, the statement said.
NiMet said the hub was conceived to “improve access to historical, monitored and forecast climate information and to support risk analysis, seasonal planning and climate-informed decision-making.”
The agency said the project was also driven by challenges that have continued to affect the delivery of climate services to the agricultural sector.
These challenges include scattered sources of climate data, poor coordination among organisations providing such information and the difficulty of turning complex forecasts into advice that farmers can easily apply.
“Officials and partners have described the hub as a response to persistent weaknesses in agricultural climate services, including fragmented data, limited coordination among information providers, and the difficulty of turning technical forecasts into timely, practical advice,” it said.
As part of the project, NiMet and ILRI organised stakeholder engagement sessions to examine the country’s agro-meteorological data and advisory systems.
The sessions were also used to identify gaps in how climate information is produced, shared and delivered to those who need it.
The agency said the process was focused on “strengthening institutional linkages, improving last-mile communication, and supporting gender and social inclusion.”
Farmers and pastoralists are among the expected users of the platform, alongside extension workers, researchers, government institutions and private agricultural advisory organisations.
NiMet said information from some of its existing resources, including online map rooms and agricultural climate products, would be incorporated into the hub to help generate advisories suited to specific locations and agricultural activities.
The agency noted that ILRI was contributing its expertise in research data management, digital tools and making technical information easier for partners and decision-makers to use.
According to NiMet, the initiative also supports the Federal Government’s priorities on food security, climate-smart agriculture and digital services under the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“By seeking to place usable climate information in the hands of producers and advisers, the hub is intended to support preparedness, reduce climate-related losses and strengthen agri-food livelihoods,” the statement said.
The agency said the new system could help farmers make better-informed decisions by bringing useful meteorological information closer to the people who depend on it for agricultural planning and risk management.
It is also expected to improve cooperation between institutions involved in collecting and processing climate data and those responsible for delivering the information to farmers and other end users.
The testing of the hub comes as stakeholders continue to push for greater use of climate-smart approaches in agriculture and better preparedness for changing weather conditions.
NiMet and its partners are expected to further test and refine the platform before moving towards broader deployment.