Africa's Green Economy = Agripreneurs + Agritech + Investment

Improving yield, efficiency and profitability in agriculture comes down to the harvesting of technology. At its forefront are the agritech innovators bringing transformative change to the continent's green economy. Forbes Africa profiles some of Africa's biggest agripreneurs, inventors, and agribusiness leaders changing the way we think about farming, food security and climate resilience. They have cultivated a passion for smart agriculture and are leading the charge for social change not only for the sector but for the continent-and for humanity's sustainable future.

- By Chanel Retief and Lillian Roberts

What are you looking at? Dr Agnes Kalibata asked the young businessman standing next to her at a summit in Kenya, who received a message on his phone and suddenly seemed very distracted.

I am checking on my cows in the Ivory Coast', he said to me, says Kalibata, the renowned Rwandan agricultural scientist and policymaker and President of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA).

Then he said 'I installed solar cameras all around my farm, which is a side hustle for me, so that I can check on my livestock whilst I work here in Kenya'.

For me, that's the future of farming! exults Kalibata.

It all boils down to not just crops or copses, flower beds or bouquets.

It lies in the innovations being sown into the evolving landscape of agricultural technology or agtech/agritech.

And these agripreneurs don't mind getting their hands dirty either-beyond their smart business suits.

The opportunities for them are immediate and ripe for the picking.

What we're seeing happening in the space, is a higher uptake of technology, says Dr Mandla Mpofu, the Managing Director of Omnia's Agriculture Division, to FORBES AFRICA.

Ominia Group specializes in conducting research and development, manufactures and supplies chemicals and specialized services and solutions for the agriculture, mining and chemicals application industries.

By technology I don't just mean the electronic side of it but also understanding the industry a bit better. So what I'm talking about here is understanding the soil, and working on improving yields. And then you have satellite technology being used and we're seeing artificial intelligence coming into this very, very exciting industry.

Kalibata tells FORBES AFRICA that the agricultural sector has really been defined by the Fourth Industrial Revolution.