Professional Evaluation of Drone Technology Applications for Agricultural Field Monitoring in Kebbi State

Precision agriculture in Kebbi State, North West Nigeria, home to extensive rice and sorghum cultivation, requires timely and accurate field intelligence for crop health assessment, pest detection, and irrigation management decisions. This study provides a professional evaluation of unmanned aerial vehicle technology as a practical field monitoring tool for agricultural operations in the state. Three commercially available agricultural drone platforms, a DJI Agras T30, a Parrot Bluegrass Fields, and a senseFly eBee X, were evaluated across five selected farms in Yauri, Argungu, and Bagudo Local Government Areas during the 2023 main cropping season. Evaluation criteria encompassed image resolution and spectral index accuracy, flight endurance, ease of operation by trained agricultural extension officers, data processing workflow efficiency, and total cost per hectare of monitoring. Multispectral NDVI maps generated from drone surveys were validated against ground-truth crop health assessments and yield data collected at harvest. NDVI anomaly zones identified by drone surveys correctly predicted low-yield areas with 79 percent spatial accuracy. Operating cost per monitoring hectare ranged from 1,200 to 3,800 Naira per flight depending on platform and area coverage. Regulatory compliance with Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority drone operation requirements is assessed, and gaps in current NAMA regulations relevant to agricultural drone operations are identified. The study provides procurement and operational recommendations for Kebbi State Agricultural Development Programme to scale drone monitoring adoption. Keywords: drone technology, precision agriculture, NDVI, field monitoring, Kebbi State