Esther founded Farmer Lifeline Technologies, a social enterprise that reduces poverty in
rural African communities by helping farmers stay ahead of crop pests and diseases with
the use of artificial intelligence.
Farmer Lifeline began in 2020, inspired by Esther’s personal experience growing up in
a farming community. With her family as small holder farmers, she saw first-hand how
pests and diseases can impact crop yields and household livelihoods. As the only young
woman from her community to obtain a university degree, Esther decided to study
computer science and machine learning, eventually using the knowledge to create a
system whereby AI-enabled cameras were installed on smallholder farms to capture
images of crops and detect signs of pests or disease. Once a threat is identified, farmers
are notified through simple SMS and mobile phone alerts.
Throughout 2025, Farmer Lifeline Technologies was able to further develop and refine
their AI pest monitoring technology and deploy additional monitoring devices to farming
communities, reaching over 4,000 smallholder farmers. This technology deployment was
complemented with farmer training and field visits focused on pest management and
climate-smart agriculture. Due to the increase in yields, many farmers have been able to
invest in their futures and better meet their food, education, and healthcare needs.
The $50,000 Lead2030 grant provided Esther with the opportunity to increase the scale
of her project, expand her real-time pest surveillance capacity, and generate field data
that has been used to improve her technology. It has also connected her with mentorship
that has encouraged her to focus not only on impact, but also on the systems, metrics,
and partnerships required to reach her goals sustainably. Ultimately, she is proud to
advocate for technology-driven solutions that improve the livelihoods in not only Kenya,
but all of Africa.
“The Summit made me see the world as a village. We are all connected in one way or another, from the Global South to the West. You realise there are needs we all share as human beings, as well as things that unite us, like empathy and the desire to give back to our communities."
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