By Adaora Adibe /Nafisat Abdulrahman
The Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC) has consistently highlighted the importance of prioritizing food security for Nigeria’s national growth and economic development. In recent years, food security has become a pressing concern as the country faces rising population demands and economic challenges. While the government and various stakeholders recognize its importance, experts stress that ensuring food security can drive both national growth and economic progress.
This key issue was the central topic of discussion at the RMRDC 360 fortnightly Zoom meeting, held on October 17, 2024, at the Council’s headquarters in Abuja, where stakeholders and experts gathered to deliberate on critical matters.
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Prof Hillary Inyang emphasized the importance of boosting productivity in agriculture in Nigeria, comparing it to other developing countries. He highlighted issues such as insecurity, lack of processing centers, transportation costs, and land ownership patterns as challenges bedeviling agriculture in Nigeria.
“for Nigeria to do so well with food security. We have to address the issues of insecurity, insecurity, physical insecurity in the farms, vandalism, kidnapping, and all of those things. Another one is that Nigeria has to put value. We call that valorization, that is putting value on the harvested products by processing, having processing centers at certain locations, then you have to deal with issues of transportation, issues of cost, issues of making sure that the farmers have access, equal access to those producing facilities so they can increase their revenue for investment”, he stated.
He also emphasized the need for consistent policies and implementation at the grassroots level to improve social and economic conditions in Nigeria and called for action to implement policies that can drive change and improve the lives of Nigerians.
” If Egypt which occupies only 5% of its national land, can try to be food secure. Why can’t Nigeria which is blessed, located in the forested, mostly forested region of West Africa?”
A food security expert, Mr. Babatunde Aluko outlined the strengths of Nigerian agriculture including vast land and diverse ecological zones while identifying weaknesses such as inadequate attention to agriculture, reliance on oil, and lack of modern technology in farming.
“Many countries depend on a crop for their food security, for example, we know the Asian people mostly a lot of them depend on rice, yes, but back to Africa, in East Africa, they depend on grains or maize in particular, if there is drought and maize harvest fails, then there’s crisis in East Africa.
“But Nigeria is not like that, if maize harvest fails in Nigeria, we have yam, we have cassava, we have potato, we have sweet potato and we have a lot of other grains. These are our strengths in Nigeria”.
On his part, an Agricultural Scientist Dr Moyo Jolaoso identified economic instability, changes in fuel prices, and poor storage infrastructure as major constraints to food security. He suggested the use of refrigerated trucks and existing railway lines to improve the movement of livestock and other perishable goods.
He explained that for a particular food to be available throughout the year in forms or shapes that people will be able to use is quite important. Using yam as an example, he said it has a specific growth cycle, and during peak production, there is often an oversupply, adding that improper storage leads to substantial wastage. However, by processing yam into flour, which is widely used for making Poundo (a popular dish in Nigeria) it can be preserved for year-round consumption and also has export potential.
According to Dr. Jolaoso, “What sustains the advanced countries, is the fact that you not only store it in its form (Agricultural products), but you transform it into shapes”.
He further emphasized the need for better organization and planning in the agricultural sector to address these challenges effectively.
According to him, “Our agricultural infrastructure is grossly inadequate”
During the discussion, Dr Bolanrewa Olugbemi emphasized the need for investment in the food sector and proper value chain analysis to identify weak and strong areas.
“where you bring issues of innovation, you bring issues of Technology advocacy and what have you, and then that will translate to investment in that sector. For the fact that most of our food chains are just straightforward kind of things. No innovation no technological basis, at the end of the day, how do you do the value chain analysis?”
He expressed the opinion that “a well-fed nation is more secure than a nation that amasses ammunitions and weapons to secure that nation”.
Dr. Olugbemi further called for the translation of research findings into practical applications for the farming community for maximum efficiency and development.
The discussion ended with calls to develop a master plan to address the food security challenges in Nigeria within the next 1-3 years, organize productivity and production at the ward level, involving NGOs and community-based organizations, to ensure food self-sufficiency and Incentivize farmers, including the youth, to increase local food production and reduce the need for imports.
