The Regional Forum for Agroecology and Organic Agriculture in West Africa has advocated the establishment of policy and instruments to control imports and sale of synthetic pesticides in the region.
The forum made the call in a communique issued at the end of its Regional Forum on Agroecology, Organic Farming and Climate-smart Agriculture on Saturday in Abuja.
The theme of the forum was “Financing the Transformation of Sustainable Food and Nutrition Systems for Food Sovereignty in West Africa through Organic Agriculture and Agroecology.”
The Head of Rapporteur, Prof Marcus Olatunji further urged leaders in the region to support local production of organic inputs and pesticides in quantity and quality capable.
He called on Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS), Economic and Monetary Union of West African States among others to scale up mobilisation of green funds for agroecology and improve farmers access to the funds.
He urged organisations to improve strategic orientation measures and instruments of sectoral development policies for better consideration of agroecology, organic agriculture and climate smart agriculture.
According to him, the call was necessary in view of the reduced yield as a result of the application of chemical fertiliser and pesticides on farms.
“There is need to build a regional vision and concept of organic agriculture to serve as a regional benchmark for stakeholders’ interventions, inclusive approach and consultation mechanisms with peasant organisations and civil societies.
“We call on ECOWAS and West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) to integrate agroecology, organic agriculture and climate smart agriculture into the KAMPALA process in accordance with the orientations of their strategies in preparation to support these practices.
“We urge regional bodies to support the establishment of a harmonised policy and appropriate certification systems for agro-ecological and organic agriculture products.
“This is purposely to improve their access to markets and support the development of inclusive value chains for agro-ecological and organic products,” he said.
Olatunji said there was the need for knowledge management and capacity building to support the scaling-up of organic farming and support the development of critical number of agroecology and organic agriculture dissemination actors
The Country Director ActionAid Nigeria, Andrew Mamedu urged stakeholders to harness their collective strengths to ensure that the voices of the most marginalised farmers are heard and amplified.
He also called for the establishments of cross-border collaboration, implement pilot projects, and create a regional framework for sharing best practices.
“Together, we can pull the powerful movement that champions agroecology, organic agriculture, and transform our agricultural system for the better,” he said.
NAN
