Association, UNESCO REF Partners to Invest in Food Security
The Police Officers Wives Association (POWA) has partnered with United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation Read and Earn Federation (UNESCO REF) to boost capacity of its members on food security
The POWA President, Mrs Elizabeth Egbetokun, who made this known recently at a One-Day Sensitization Workshop in Abuja said that the Partnership would be achieved through the President Bola Tinubu’s mandate to address food shortage and insecurity,
According to her, the workshop would build capacity of POWA members on its PET project towards attaining the United Nations goals 2 aimed at achieving ‘ZERO HUNGER’.
She said that the She urged members of POWA to support and align with President Bola Tinubu’s mandate to fight food insecurity in the country.
Egbetokun, also the wife of the Inspector General of Police, thanked the UNESCO REF for its support in addressing the pressing issue of food shortage in Nigeria.
”I believe your ultimate support would be necessary to align with today’s administration to fight food insecurity declared by President Bola Tinubu, as a state of emergency. The workshop will address the pressing issue of food shortage in Nigeria and most importantly steps towards a progressive and successful implementation of our goals to make our women more relevant in today’s society,” she said.
In his remarks, President of UNESCO REF, Prince Abdulsalami Ladigbolu said building the capacity of POWA members on effective engagement and implementation of action plan would go a long way in addressing food shortage in the country.
According to him, the workshop, being a non-kinetic approach, will strengthen national security through agriculture.
“The purpose of the workshop is geared towards addressing food shortage in the country as well as enhancing national security. We believe that any society without research and development is dead. President Tinubu has told us his plans about enhancing food security through the cultivation of 500,000 tonnes of land. Food security affects all of us because an hungry man is an angry man,” Ladigbolu said.
According to him, there is the need to prepare something ahead so that we don’t have a food crisis. We are talking about the next line of action.
”One of the causes of food insecurity is climate change.
“When we don’t have food, we encroach into land meant for farming and the ones available we keep planting until the nutrients are no longer there and then we depend on fertilizer to boost the crops”, he said.
He added that the executives of POWA had been identified to lead the process of addressing food shortage through the project.
According to him, the project is to enhance the agricultural value chain, forex reservation through economic diversification and bespoke agricultural produce and boost sustainable food production in the country.
”UNESCO REF has the mandate to address issues that are aligned with the nation’s priorities and aspirations. So what we are doing is to align with the problems.We must ensure we are proactive to the priorities of Nigeria such as health, education and agriculture.
”If there is no education, we have hoodlums and this will lead to insecurity. So, everyone has to be involved in the project,” he said.
Agro Nigeria / Foluke Ibitomi
