Agriculture
AN NGO, Madison Development Partners (MDP) has launched a new magazine known as “Nigerian Harvest” to educate Nigerian youths in every part of the country on agricultural developments.
News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the vision of the quarterly magazine is to gather and serve the reading public with news about promising agricultural and rural development initiatives.
It also aims to tell success stories that impact or have impacted lives and livelihoods of Nigerians.
The NGO, while launching the magazine in Abuja, charged the government and private sector operators to galvanise efforts to support and provide Nigerians with useful information on agriculture that would enable abundant harvest in the country.
Mr Godson Ononiwu, the Publisher/Editor-in-chief of the magazine said that the objectives and the vision of the magazine was to share knowledge and information on food and agriculture as they affect the lives and livelihood of Nigerians.
According to Ononiwu, development implies change and change is the product of decision based on information.
“That is why all actions in the agriculture value chains continually need and consume information to enable them make progress.
“Over time, we find out that agriculture is being relegated, but now many people are pouring into agriculture hence the publishing of this magazine.
“In the past few decades, so many programmes on agriculture development have been instituted by government and individuals with varying degrees of success.
“Some of them failed, while some others succeeded but unfortunately, many of them feezled out due to poor publicity or lack of media attention.
“This magazine therefore hopes to transmute from Nigerian harvest into African harvest not too long from now as predicted by a well wisher, “he said.
Ononiwu, who is also a former Director, United States Agency for National Development (USAID), MARKETS Project assured Nigerians that the magazine would not only educate people on food and agriculture.
“it will also help to transform the narratives of Nigerian news on agriculture in the country.
“Agriculture and rural news do not usually make headlines of popular print or electronic media because they are not hot news or hard news.
“The vision of the Magazine “Nigerian Harvest” is to fill this gap through gathering and serving the reading public promising agricultural development initiatives as well as success stories that will impact on lives and livelihood of Nigerians.”
Prof. Joy Ogwu, a former Minister of Foreign Affairs and Chairperson of the event said that the survival of any Nation was dependent on food security.
“That is why this platform is so vital because food security is what sustains the power of a nation.
“Without enough food, we will have conflicts and that’s war,” she said.
Ogwu, who was also Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the UN said that the younger generation felt that agriculture was slow in its rewards.
She however urged the youths to look at the vitality of agriculture in the national interest.
“Over the years we have heard of efforts being made not only by government but also individuals to ensure that there is adequate food security.
“So, I want to urge Nigerians who would like to venture into agriculture to use this magazine as a guide and a golden opportunity,” she added.
NAN
– Nov. 17, 2019 @ 15:25 GMT |
Tags: NGO launches magazine to educate youths on agric developments
