As Nigeria confronts mounting pressures of food insecurity, climate disruption, and youth unemployment, a communications expert has argued that the success of digital agriculture in the country will depend less on the sophistication of available technology and more on the quality of public communication surrounding it.

Maryam Abdullahi, lead projects, partnerships, training and capacity build for National Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (NCAIR) made this case during the third pre-conference webinar organized by the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) ahead of the Nigeria Public Relations Week 2026, where she delivered a presentation titled “Digital Agriculture in Emerging Technologies: The Role of Public Relations in Public Enlightenment.”

Her central argument was disarmingly simple but profoundly important: technology availability is not the same as technology adoption. Despite significant investment in digital agricultural tools, a stubborn gap persists between what is available and what farmers on the ground are actually using. Bridging that gap, she insisted, is precisely where Public Relations becomes not just relevant but strategic.

“Digital agriculture is transforming how the world produces food but technology alone does not guarantee transformation. The real question is: how do we ensure the public understands, trusts, and adopts these emerging technologies?”

A Nation at a Turning Point

Abdullahi framed against Nigeria’s dual reality. On the challenge side, she pointed to the country’s trajectory toward becoming one of the world’s most populous nations, climate change disrupting rainfall patterns, food inflation straining millions of households, and agricultural productivity remaining below global averages.

Yet she was equally emphatic about the opportunities rising mobile and internet penetration, robust fintech growth, an expanding digital ecosystem, a young tech-savvy population, and strong policy interest in agricultural modernisation.

“The opportunity is clear. But opportunity does not automatically translate to adoption that requires deliberate communication strategy.”

The Adoption Gap

Abdullahi spoke to why technology adoption lags despite the clear availability of transformative tools. She identified four barriers PR professionals must address: limited awareness among rural communities about available digital tools; fear of complexity caused by jargon-heavy messaging that creates psychological barriers; mistrust of new systems among communities with limited prior technology exposure; and infrastructure gaps where inconsistent electricity and internet connectivity limit practical access.

She was clear that none of these are primarily technical problems. They are communication problems requiring communication solutions.

Where PR Becomes Strategic

Abdullahi outlined four core strategic roles for PR practitioners in the digital agriculture space. First, translating complexity into clarity by converting technical language into plain, culturally relevant messaging communities can act upon. Second, building trust between innovators and communities through genuine dialogue rather than one-way broadcasts. Third, countering misinformation proactively by addressing false narratives before they take root. Fourth, managing expectations responsibly by setting realistic timelines so communities are not disappointed by overpromising.

The Risks of Getting Communication Wrong

She also mentioned the consequences of poor communication. When communication fails, misinformation about data theft or job losses spreads faster than corrections. Farmers resist innovation, defaulting to familiar methods because no trusted voice has spoken to them clearly. Policy backlash follows poorly communicated reforms, triggering opposition that derails progress. And investor confidence drops as negative public sentiment reduces capital inflows into the sector.

“Fear spreads faster than innovation. PR must proactively manage the narrative before misinformation takes hold.”

The Way Forward

Abdullahi closed with a five-point framework for a genuinely transformed agricultural sector: expanding rural digital infrastructure including reliable electricity and broadband connectivity; strengthening agricultural extension services with tech literacy training; institutionalising PR within agricultural reform by embedding communication professionals in every major policy initiative; building multilingual awareness campaigns that are sustained and culturally sensitive across all major Nigerian languages; and maintaining policy consistency with stable, coherent messaging from all government and institutional actors.

“Technology builds tools. Public Relations builds understanding. Understanding builds trust. Trust builds adoption. Adoption builds transformation. Transformation feeds a nation.”