President Muhammadu Buhari has commended the Africa Development Bank (AfDB) for what he called planning ahead of whatever negative consequences may come from the Russia-Ukraine war in terms of food security.
The President gave the commendation on Tuesday at the State House Abuja during a private meeting with the AfDB President, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, who briefed him on steps being taken by the bank to avert a possible future food crisis in Africa.
The President said “Thank you for knowing our weaknesses and our strengths, and for planning and working ahead,”
“We are very much aware of the need for food security, and to encourage our local farmers, that was why we closed our borders for about two years to curb smuggling. We made some progress.”
Adesina said the Russia-Ukraine war would create global problems, particularly for Africa, which imports a huge percentage of its food from the two countries.
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He explained that “Already, the price of wheat has gone up about 60%, Maize and other grains will also be affected adding that there may be fertilizer crisis, as there would be a deficit of about 2 million metric tons.
He says this will affect food production by about 20% and Africa will lose $11 billion worth of food.
Dr Adesina said the AfDB has developed a $1.5 billion Africa Emergency Food Plan, which is now before the bank’s Board for approval.
He added: “We were not ready for COVID-19, but we are now planning to avert food crisis on the continent. There is a plan to help farmers cultivate wheat, maize, rice, sorghum, and soybeans. It will mitigate the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war.”
Talking specifically of Nigeria, Adesina, a former Minister of Agriculture of the country said in the wet season of 2022, at least 5 million smallholder farmers will be helped to cultivate 1 million hectares of maize, 1 million hectares of rice, and 250,000 hectares of sorghum and soybeans, respectively.
States that will benefit from the assistance include Kano, Ogun, Oyo, Kaduna, Imo, Cross River, and the Federal Capital Territory.
Editor Oloyede Oworu
