The Nigerian Government says “We will meet our food security target despite climate change challenges and losses”.
Minister of Agriculture and Food security, Abubakar Kyari, who said this on the heels of climate change concerns advised farmers to embrace smart agriculture and harness the potential of early maturing seeds.
The Minister pledged to intensify efforts in the 2024-2025 dry season farming to cover the losses incurred in the 2024 floods and ensure more sustainable and secure future for the Agriculture sector.
With fear of the impact on the next harvest season, Abubakar Kyari said the development is worrisome and will have a negative effect on the social and economic well-being of the rural farmers, especially the small-scale farmers.
In his words “The impact of this will be felt on the anticipated harvest this year, though we are hopeful it will have minimal effect on national food security.”
While sympathising with thousands of farmers whose farms were destroyed by floods in the country, the Minister also sympathised with the farmers who lost their crops as a result of a dry spell that lasted for weeks in some states in the North-Central, North-East, parts of the North-West, and South-West.
He noted that President Bola Tinubu, has encouraged technologies driven Agriculture to empower farmers adapt to a changing climate and safeguard their livelihoods against unpredictable weather patterns.
The recent figures released by the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA indicate that more than thousands of hectares of farmlands were damaged with more than forty thousand people displaced by the flood in the country.
He said the Ministry and that of Water Resources and Sanitation are collaborating towards improving areas under cultivation during dry season farming, as he urged all citizens to join hands in solidarity with the farmers, states, and local governments and offer more support and resources to those who toil tirelessly to feed the country.
(Editor: Terverr Tyav)
