News in brief: The Nigerian government plans to use unused land in tertiary institutions for farming to increase food supply, with a focus on reviving agricultural practices in schools. The government will provide input support to farmers, including solar-powered irrigation pumps to encourage dry season farming.
The Federal Government of Nigeria has announced plans to utilise idle acres of land in tertiary institutions for farming as part of its measures to boost food supply across the country.
Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, stated this at a function organised by the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, through the ministry’s Deputy Director, Nutrition and Food Safety, Nuhu Kilishi. The event was themed Ending Food Shortage in Nigeria, How to Apply the Surplus Concept.
Kilishi revealed that the administration has sent letters to institutions around the country to inform them of the plan, while banking on their approval towards the scheme. Also, he revealed that the move would help revive agricultural practices in school, an aspect of the plan that some of the contacted institutions were already responding favourably to.
Additionally, the he mentioned that the government would provide agricultural inputs like solar-powered irrigation pumps as a means to support farmers.
However, the minister stressed the need for farmers to explore options in processing their food crops, as a step towards maximising profits, instead of stopping at the production level.
Other speakers at the event highlighted the importance of government support in the sector, including the keynote speaker, Professor of Plant Breeding and Genetics at the Babcock University, Cryil Nwamguruka. He stated that food shortage in the country was mainly due to selfishness and called on President Bola Tinubu to appoint only selfless and committed individuals to handle public affairs.
Furthermore, appeals were made to the government to provide where absent, or boost where minimal, security presence in the country in order to assure the protection of lives and properties of stakeholders in the sector.
This is not the first time that the government is mentioning lands on higher institutions being transformed into farmlands. During a presentation of plans for reviving the food production industry, Kyari had made a similar statement.
