FG targets food security with agricultural technology programme

The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security has launched the Renewed Hope Agricultural Technology Adoption Programme (RHATAP) with a view to promoting the adoption of modern agricultural technologies and practices.

This is also as the ministry commissioned a veterinary clinic, research fish pond and a modern store building at the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria (ARCN) in Abuja on Thursday.

Abubakar Kyari, minister of Agriculture and Food Security, emphasised the importance of these facilities in improving animal health, promoting aquaculture, and enhancing the overall productivity of the agricultural sector.

“The veterinary clinic is expected to play a critical role in safeguarding the health of livestock, preventing the spread of diseases, and boosting the productivity of the sector.

“The fish pond, on the other hand, will serve as a research facility and demonstration centre for showcasing best practices in fish farming,” he said.

The minister emphasised the need for continuous investment in research, infrastructure, and capacity-building to achieve food security and sustainable agricultural development.

He also pledged the ministry’s commitment to collaborating with all stakeholders, including ARCN, to ensure the success of these initiatives.

The commissioning of these facilities and the launch of RHATAP are expected to have a significant impact on Nigeria’s agricultural sector, contributing to improved food security, increased productivity, and enhanced livelihoods for farmers and rural communities, the minister further said.

In his remarks, Garba Hamidu Sharubutu, executive secretary, Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria, said the projects commissioned were conceived to better position the Council to contribute to President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, promote food security, increase the visibility of the agricultural research system, and strengthen its coordination with the international research partners.

Accordingly, the projects have been implemented in furtherance of the mandates of the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria to manage, supervise and coordinate agricultural research, training and extension in the National Agricultural Research Institutes and the Federal Colleges of Agriculture in Nigeria.

The executive secretary noted that the Council has, over the years, received a significant number of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members and Students Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) trainees on a regular basis.

“The Council usually takes them to outside facilities to provide them with hands-on trainings. In addition, the Council partners with
Regional Bodies such as the ECOWAS and CORAF in training Nigerian youth on fish production and processing, with over 150 beneficiaries in the last two years.”

“In order to foster a more in-house hands-on and fulfilling learning experience, research findings demonstration, and technologies dissemination, the Council saw
the need to establish this fish production facility, which is the third project to be commissioned today.

“The culture unit has three concrete tanks of 6.5 m3 each, with a stocking potential of 2500/tank as well as smoking kilns for demonstration and training on fish processing.”