Agriculture
EXPERTS in organic and agro- ecological sector have urged Nigerians to harness the opportunities in the sector to create jobs and increase the country’s revenue base.
They spoke separately at the 2022 National Organic Agricultural Business Summit on Tuesday in Ibadan.
The Minister of Agriculture, Dr Mohammed Abubakar, said the world was going the organic way, adding that Nigeria, being the giant of Africa, could not afford to be left behind.
Abubakar was represented by Mrs Janet Igor, an Assistant Director with Farm Input Support Services, in the ministry, who is also in charge of Organic Development and Promotion in Nigeria.
“We intend to lead by example by being the head and the hallmark of organic production and agro-ecology in Africa.
“The Federal Government, through the Ministry of Agriculture, is promoting organic agricultural and agroecology.
“As it is, by promoting the use of organic fertiliser, organic pesticides, organic herbicides and micronutrients to enable the farmers to produce organically grown produce that would be enjoyed in and out of Nigeria.
“There are some European countries that you produced for and they give you specific fertilisers to use, that is allowed in their labels and government has given us money to promote these,” he said.
In his remarks, Dr Olugenga Adeoluwa, the Country Coordinator, Ecological Organic Agriculture Initiative in Nigeria and Organic and Agroecology Initiative (ORAIN), said the purpose of the event was to educate the populace on various opportunities available within the organic and agro-ecological sector.
Adeoluwa said: “Nigeria is going through a situation whereby our youths and women are struggling to get jobs.
“But within our various agro-economic systems, we have what it takes to provide jobs and put food on the tables of the citizens and also to improve our GDP through various avenues; the organic and agro-ecological system of the country.”
He said there were so many challenges bedevelling the sector, especially within the value chain, adding that awareness of organic food was key among them.
According to him, agro-ecological sector also addressed the issue of climate change and has the potential to solve the problems facing farmers, through climate-smart farming.
Commenting, the state Commissioner for Education, Mr Raheem Abdulraman, highlighted the various programmes of the state government.
Abdulraman, represented by Mr Olajide Okesade, an Inspector-General of Education, Oyo Zone,
noted the state government’s passion in driving agriculture and agribusiness right from the public secondary schools.
He said that the success story of Fasola School in Oyo, through the Start Them Early Programme (STEP) and the upscaling to further harness agricultural value addition. (NAN)
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Tags: Janet Igor Mohammed Abubakar Olajide Okesade Olugenga Adeoluwa
