Imagine trying to garden without knowing if your soil is sandy, salty, or exhausted; it's a guessing game. This project creates a giant digital library and dashboard for soil health across Africa. It gathers scattered information into one place so farmers and planners know exactly what the land needs to grow crops effectively.
Agricultural productivity in Africa is hindered by widespread soil degradation and a critical lack of accessible, accurate soil health data. This prevents the implementation of targeted interventions and evidence-based land management.
The project is establishing the African Union Soil Observatory (AUSO), which consists of the African Soil Data Center (ASDAC) and a Soil Health Dashboard.
If you are a software provider dealing with a lack of regional soil maps for your AI models — this project developed a Soil Health Dashboard that provides accessible data to improve crop yield predictions.
If you are a manufacturer dealing with inefficient product distribution due to unknown soil deficiencies — this project developed the African Soil Data Center (ASDAC) that helps target specific soil health needs.
If you are an insurer dealing with high risk due to soil degradation and climate change — this project developed a monitoring platform that allows for evidence-based risk assessment of land productivity.
Based on available project data, pricing details are not provided as the project is focused on establishing the observatory and data center.
The project aims to develop national soil health strategies in 12 countries, indicating a scale-up phase across the continent.
The observatory will be owned by the African Union Commission and managed by FARA; specific licensing terms for private companies are not listed.
The project period runs from 2025-07-01 to 2030-06-30.
It builds on the Soils4Africa SIS and draws insights from the EU Soil Observatory to ensure it fits the African context.
The consortium is heavily weighted toward research and public administration, featuring 14 research organizations and 4 universities across 20 countries. Notably, there is a 0% industry ratio, meaning the project is currently driven by academic and governmental bodies rather than commercial entities, presenting an entry opportunity for private sector partners to provide technical implementation.
Contact the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) in Ghana
Contact us to identify partnership opportunities with the 23 consortium members.
