Scaling Modern, Data-Driven Farming Across Africa

AgriLogiq and NEC XON have announced a strategic partnership that brings together advanced agricultural technology expertise and enterprise-grade digital infrastructure to deliver integrated, end-to-end solutions for modern, protected, and data-driven farming.

The partnership between AgriLogiq and NEC XON originated through the NINJA (Next Innovation with Japan) Accelerator programme implemented by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in South Africa, an initiative designed to catalyse strategic collaboration between innovative African startups and global technology leaders. Through the NINJA Accelerator - Open Innovation Edition, AgriLogiq participated in a structured proof-of-concept with NEC XON, validating the alignment between AgriLogiq’s controlled-environment agriculture platforms and NEC XON’s infrastructure-led approach to food security and agricultural development in Africa. The successful PoC, followed by direct engagement with NEC Corporation leadership in Tokyo and exposure to Japanese investors and partners, confirmed both technical fit and shared strategic intent, laying the foundation for a deeper, long-term partnership focused on scaling resilient, data-driven farming solutions across African markets.

Joel van der Schyff, Co-Founder & CGO | AgriLogiq

What the partners bring to the table
Says Chris Duvenage, Business Unit Manager Digital at NEC XON: “The collaboration combines AgriLogiq’s deep specialisation in controlled-environment and greenhouse agriculture with NEC XON’s capabilities in power, connectivity, digital infrastructure, and large-scale programme delivery. Together, the partners aim to address some of the most pressing challenges facing agriculture today, including rising input costs, climate volatility, infrastructure constraints, and the need for scalable, resilient food production systems.

AgriLogiq contributes highly specialised agricultural technology spanning climate control, irrigation, fertigation, environmental sensing, automation, and advanced analytics. These platforms enable precision farming, significantly reduced input usage, improved yields and crop quality, and lower operational risk - capabilities that typically take decades to develop within the agricultural domain.

“NEC XON complements this with enterprise-grade infrastructure and digital enablement, including solar and energy systems, connectivity and networking, sensing and security technologies, and data platforms. With a strong presence in complex public-sector, donor-funded, and multinational programmes across Africa, NEC XON brings delivery scale, market access, and execution capability that extend the reach of the combined offering,”  says Joel van der Schyff, AgriLogiq Co-Founder and CGO.

Geared for African conditions
The partnership enables turnkey farming solutions that span the full technology stack - from power and connectivity through to sensing, automation, analytics, and operational management - especially suitable for deployment in infrastructure-constrained environments. This single-accountability delivery model is particularly well suited to African contexts. By simplifying implementation and reducing coordination complexity, the partnership ensures more reliable outcomes across remote, resource-limited, and large-scale deployments.

The partnership also addresses the agricultural skills gap by combining AgriLogiq’s highly automated, easy-to-use farming systems with NEC XON’s remote support and infrastructure management capabilities. System complexity is managed in the background, allowing growers to focus on production while infrastructure and optimisation are handled automatically. This lowers barriers to adoption in skills-scarce markets, with full system training achievable in under an hour, and enables consistent, high-performance operations even in remote environments without reliance on specialist on-site expertise.

Strategically, the collaboration positions both organisations at the forefront of agriculture’s transition toward hybrid and protected production systems that are climate-resilient, lower-variability, and more bankable. These systems are easier to finance, monitor, and insure - critical factors in African markets where agricultural risk has historically limited investment. NEC XON’s capabilities in power, connectivity, and digital infrastructure make advanced farming viable even where grid stability and connectivity are inconsistent, while AgriLogiq’s platforms enable consistent production, improved quality, and measurable performance across diverse crops and climates.

A unique combination
While the partnership is non-exclusive, it is distinctive in reach and structure. AgriLogiq continues to collaborate with multiple agricultural partners, while NEC XON operates at a scale and level of access uncommon in the agri-tech sector, including complex government, donor-funded, and multinational programmes. For NEC XON, the collaboration adds proven controlled-environment agriculture capability; for AgriLogiq, it unlocks access to large-scale tenders, new geographies, and impact-driven initiatives across the African continent.

About NEC XON
NEC XON is a leading African integrator of ICT solutions and part of NEC, a Japanese global company. The holding company has operated in Africa since 1963 and delivers communications, energy, safety, security, and digital solutions. It co-creates social value through innovation to help overcome serious societal challenges. The organisation operates in 54 African countries and has a footprint in 16 of them. Regional headquarters are located in South, East, and West Africa. NEC XON is a level 1-certified broad-based black economic empowerment (B-BBEE) business. Discover more at www.nec.africa.

Issued by: Michelle Oelschig, Scarlet Letter
Contact details: 083-636-1766, [email protected]