UN sustainable development goals

Precision agriculture for
sustainable impact

ShambaIQ contributes to 5 UN Sustainable Development Goals by making high-resolution satellite soil data free and accessible to every Kenyan farmer.

47
Counties covered
49
Crops analyzed
1,450
Wards mapped
Free
Cost to farmers
1
Goal 1

No poverty

Reducing wasted input spend

Kenyan smallholder farmers spend an average of KES 8,000–15,000 per acre on fertilizer each season. Without soil data, many buy the wrong type — DAP on acidic soil locks phosphorus, wasting up to 40% of the investment. ShambaIQ's precision recommendations match fertilizer to actual soil chemistry, saving farmers KES 2,000–5,000 per acre per season.

15
Acidic soil counties needing Mavuno instead of DAP
KES 3,000+
Potential savings per acre per season
7
Alkaline soil counties needing different strategy
2
Goal 2

Zero hunger

Higher yields through soil intelligence

When farmers know their soil's exact nutrient gaps, they can target interventions precisely. A farmer in Nakuru with pH 6.28 and adequate phosphorus doesn't need DAP — they need CAN for nitrogen top dressing. This targeted approach increases yield by 20–40% compared to blanket fertilizer application, producing more food from the same land.

40
Crops with precision recommendations
47
Counties with complete soil profiles
1,450+
Wards with precision data
5
Goal 5

Gender equality

Removing barriers for women farmers

Women make up over 60% of Kenya's smallholder farmers but face disproportionate barriers to agricultural advice. Extension officer visits are infrequent and often reach male household heads. Agrovet shops in market towns require travel and cash. ShambaIQ delivers the same precision advice through any phone — free, bilingual (English and Kiswahili), and accessible from the shamba itself.

Free
Cost to access soil advice
2 (EN + SW)
Languages supported
Any phone with browser
Minimum technology required
13
Goal 13

Climate action

Data-driven climate-smart farming

Over-application of synthetic nitrogen fertilizer produces nitrous oxide (N₂O), a greenhouse gas 300 times more potent than CO₂. By calculating the exact nitrogen gap for each county and crop, ShambaIQ prevents over-application — farmers buy only what the soil needs. Our intercropping recommendations promote live mulch systems that reduce soil temperature, conserve moisture, and build soil organic carbon.

Up to 30%
N₂O reduction from precision N application
Up to 40%
Soil moisture savings from intercrop mulch
8+
Intercropping systems by agroecological zone
15
Goal 15

Life on land

Monitoring soil health to prevent degradation

Soil degradation affects 33% of Kenya's arable land. Without monitoring, farmers don't know their soil is declining until yields collapse. ShambaIQ tracks five key soil parameters (pH, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, organic carbon) for every county using satellite soil data at 30-metre resolution. This creates a national baseline that makes soil degradation visible and actionable.

5
Soil parameters monitored
30 metres
Satellite resolution
12
Counties below critical organic carbon

Our data sources

ShambaIQ is entirely built on open, peer-reviewed geospatial and meteorological datasets — not proprietary data locked behind high paywalls.

Satellite soil maps

30-metre high-resolution soil maps for Africa. Monitors pH, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and organic carbon. Built using machine learning models trained on 100,000+ localized soil samples.

ISRIC SoilGrids

250-metre global standardized soil databases. Provides secondary verification and robust fallback parameters when localized maps require broad calibration.

Open-Meteo

Premium agronomic weather telemetry and 7-day predictive rainfall models. Dynamically calculates optimal application windows to prevent fertilizer runoff.

Partner with us

We are actively looking for development partners, county agronomists, and non-profit organizations who want to scale precision soil science and agricultural security for smallholder farmers.