A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Mohammed Ndarani, has urged Nigerians of all classes to return to farming to ensure food security in the country.
Ndarani said this in an interview on Saturday in Abuja.
He frowned at the report that no fewer than 26.5 million Nigerians suffered from food insecurity in 2024 as a result of a wildly unpredictable farming season and the frequent flash floods and long months of drought.
“While growing up, every family had farms, we were all farmers, going to the farm after coming back from school, and there was sufficient food in the country.
“I had part of my education abroad, but still went to the farm with my parents whenever I was in the country.
“We must go back to farming, let the rich get involved in mechanized agriculture just like governor Bago is doing in Niger state while the small holder farmers can farm even at their backyards.
“We must fight food insecurity from all angles. If every household has vegetables at their backyards, prices of vegetables will come down, and the same thing goes for other crops.’’ he said.
He commended President Bola Tinubu and Gov. Umaru Bago of Niger for the establishment of the Abdulsalami Abubakar University of Agriculture and Climate Action, Mokwa.
The learned silk said the establishment of the university was a huge step towards food security.
“The establishment of this university speaks to the vibrant vision of the farmer governor Bago, for education.
“It will serve the additional purpose of reducing, considerably, the rate of unemployment in the state. This it will do by the creation of diverse opportunities.
“Apart from the direct employment opportunities found in the administration, teaching and support services, there are also the indirect employment opportunities.
“They will mop up the unskilled labour that is often the focus of attention for terror recruitments.
“Being a specialised university, it will equip the students with marketable skills, especially in the area of climate action, a subject that is currently occupying the attention of the world,’’ he said.
He urged the management to ensure the university contributed immensely in combatting food insecurity, not only in Niger State, but in Nigeria as a whole.
“Nigerians are expecting it to attract businesses, especially in research and technology, with the additional advantage of serving as a hub that can foster innovation and entrepreneurship, often through research and startup incubators,’’ he said.
Ndarani said that Nigerians were expecting the nation’s universities to produce research outcomes on climate-resilient crops, improving water management systems and promoting sustainable farming practices.
“We expect our agriculture institutions across the country to come up with innovations that will address the effect of climate change.
“Climate change is a variable to consider in any discussion or project that involves enhancing agricultural productivity and, by extension, food security.
“It is expected that the new university will design methods of combating climate change and thereby mitigate its effect on agriculture.
`We expect that these and other untapped potentials will catalyse the economic growth and development of Mokwa in particular and the state in general,” he said.
NAN
