South African Students Innovate Affordable AgriTech for Small Farmers at TCS Sustainathon 2025

South African university students are turning innovative ideas into practical solutions for small-scale farmers. At the 2025 TCS Sustainathon, held earlier this month at Wits University, 10 finalist teams pitched tech-based solutions to tackle challenges in sustainable agriculture and food security.

The competition, now in its fourth year, drew over 400 registrations from 50 universities, with finalists presenting their projects on 8 September 2025. Winners walked away with cash prizes of R30,000, R20,000, and R15,000, while the remaining teams each received R5,000.

Winning Innovations

🥇 First Prize: AgriSentry – Affordable Soil Sensors

Team PowerLock from the University of Cape Town (UCT) claimed first place with AgriSentry, a low-cost sensor system that helps small-scale farmers monitor soil moisture, sunlight, and temperature.

The system translates this data into SMS alerts in local languages, guiding farmers on when to irrigate, fertilize, or pause watering before rain. Over time, it builds a performance record, helping farmers access loans, insurance, or subsidies.

“We wanted to make sensors affordable for the small guys — so they too can double their yields and profits,” said Phemelo Maile, UCT PhD candidate in Electrical Engineering.

The starter kit will cost around R2,000 for two hectares, with add-on sensors and subscription services available as farmers grow.

🥈 Second Prize: Sustainorise – A Digital Marketplace for Farmers

Wits University students introduced Peu, a web-based platform linking rural farmers directly to urban markets.

The platform combines:

Marketplace – buyers order produce and interact with farmers directly.
Social Farm Hub – a knowledge-sharing network for farmers, with tutorials and resources.
Finance Tools – insights into farm performance and credit scores to attract investors.

Supporting all South African languages and integrating with Capitec Pay, Mukuru, and AI demand forecasting, Peu aims to cut waste and ensure fair pricing.

🥉 Third Prize: Agri-link – Precision Agriculture for Smallholders

Eduvos Midrand students took third place with Agri-link, a system of solar-powered sensor nodes paired with a mobile-friendly “insight engine.”

Features include:

Soil and climate monitoring via SMS, app, or offline USSD.
A crop health diagnosis tool.
A community forum for peer support.

Their model projects a 25% increase in yields, 30% reduction in water use, and 20% fertilizer savings.

Why It Matters

South Africa faces food security challenges, with nearly 22% of households struggling with access to food and 28% of children under five stunted due to malnutrition. Climate risks, rising costs, and degraded soils add to the burden.

Judges praised the winning teams for realistic, scalable solutions designed around farmers’ realities: affordability, language accessibility, offline functionality, and climate resilience.

“These students are not just imagining the future — they are building it,” said Langa Dube, TCS Regional Director for South Africa and Rest of Africa.

Outlook

With projects like AgriSentry, Peu, and Agri-link, the next generation of innovators is paving the way for a more sustainable, food-secure South Africa, where small-scale farmers are empowered by technology to thrive in the face of climate and economic pressures.