Agriculture stakeholders have urged farmers to adopt resilient crops as a strategic response to the challenges posed by climate change.
The stakeholders gave the advice during a meeting of the Technical Working Group of Kano on Germplasm User Group, organised by National Centre for Genetic Resources and Biotechnology (NACGRAB) on Friday in Kano.
Addressing the participants, the acting-Director of NACGRAB, Dr Anthony Okere, said mandate of the centre was to collect and conserve valuable genetic resources for food and agriculture and ensure that they were used sustainably.
Okere, who was represented by Dr Abisoye Ojo, Deputy Director at NACGRAB, said the project was aimed at improving the use and management of germplasm collections through germplasm users engagement.
The acting-director expressed optimism on the project, saying that it would achieve its objectives.
He said that the project’s target was to address climate change and encourage Nigerian farmers to adopt the centre’s climate resilient seeds under the ‘Crop for Resilience’ project.
Okere advised farmers to adopt resilient crops to tackle climate change and ensure food security.
He said that the meeting was also organised to teach and encourage farmers on how to use climate resilient crops and best agriculture practice.
Also speaking, Dr Mayowa Olubiyi, from NACGRAB, noted that the centre was committed to the conservation of the rich genetic resources of the nation, with a view to enhancing agricultural, economic and social development.
According to him, essence of the meeting is to relate with the Technical Working Group to know its roles in the user engagement project.
He said that the Technical Working Group and the center would continue to support and guide the farmers on selecting the right variety for cultivation.
Olubiyi said that the project, supported by the Global Crop Diversity Trust, intended to mitigate effects of climate change in Nigeria.
Similarly, the Country Representative of International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) Nigeria, Dr Angarawai Ignatius, urged the farmers to change their traditional mindset by adopting NACGRAB climate resilient seeds under crop for resilience project.
He also said that the project, supported by Crop Trust, aimed at mitigating effects of climate change in Nigeria.
The ICRISAT boss said that when the good practices were properly applied, farmers would witness great improvement in their yields.
Similarly, Prof. Sanusi Gaya of Center for Dry Land Agriculture (CDA), Bayero University Kano, urged farmers to embrace climate resilient crops and good agricultural practices, to improve their yields and ensure food security in the country.
He said that it was important for the farmers to drift from some old methods of farming as climate change had altered some variables, making such practices unproductive.
“It is important to educate and equip farmers with modern and climate-smart agricultural practices, considering the effects of climate change on agriculture,” he said.
Some of the farmers who spoke at the event lauded the efforts of NACGRAB and other stakeholders for the gesture and promised to share the knowledge with others.
