Nigerian Food System: Stakeholders Showcase Agriculture Innovations

The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research, CGIAR, in collaboration with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, IITA, the Food and Agriculture Oganisation of the United Nations, FAO, and other partners is holding an exhibition to showcase innovations in the agricultural value chain to better support Nigeria’s food system.

The exhibition aims to bring latest research findings, policies, improved seed varieties, crop varieties that have been developed across board to farmers in the country to boost the Nigerian food system and accelerate the Sustainable Development Goal which is zero hunger.

The exhibition, which is ongoing in Abuja Nigeria’s capital, is part of the weeklong celebration of the 2023 World Food Day.

The country convener, CIGAR Nigeria, Ms Aline Mugisho, said one of the targets of showcasing the innovations is to make agriculture more attractive for youth in the country.

Ms Mugisho noted that some of the innovations on display are meant to make agribusiness appealing to the youth, adding that agriculture today involves digital technologies and the use of machinery.

“this one thing we are trying to change, for a very long time when they see a farmer the image has been surrounding a very old, no so good looking person but farming is business, all the food we eat comes from the and sometimes the medications we have in the pharmacies come from the farm which means they’re a very wealthy people but badly portrayed and the reason why you don’t see them in that face here is because is to really emphasis that agriculture is a business”

On his part, the FAO head, North East Operation, Al-hassan Cisse, said the FAO partners with stakeholders to scale up the innovation on display as it is instrumental to fighting food insecurity.

“ innovation scaling up is very necessary, it helps fight against food insecurity  and nutrition and it’s something we have to do together, including the government which is central to creating the enabling environment  that fosters all the innovation that deals with climate change”

He noted that FAO is working to ensure better usage of water for food production in line with the theme of the 2023 World Food Day “water is life, Water is food, live no one behind”  particularly in drought areas where rain/flood is harvested and used for irrigation.

Shakirat Sadiq