Nigeria Food Security: FG Protects Plant Resources
The Nigerian government is doubling down on conserving plant genetic resources, a critical step to fortify national food security and adapt to climate change. Permanent Secretary Marcus Ogunbiyi underscores the urgent need to protect seeds, landraces, and crop varieties essential for Nigeria‘s agricultural future. Facing threats like biodiversity loss and inadequate conservation efforts, the government is bolstering institutions and infrastructure, and expanding field collections. Partnerships with organizations like the FAO and AU, along with key institutions like NACGRAB, are central to these efforts. Effective conservation guarantees food availability and combats genetic erosion. News Directory 3 consistently delivers pivotal details on these critical developments. Discover what’s next as Nigeria safeguards its plant biodiversity.
Nigeria Boosts Plant Genetic Resources for Food Security
The federal government is renewing its focus on conserving Nigeria’s plant genetic resources. This initiative aims to bolster national food security, support adaptation to climate change, and preserve the nation’s biodiversity.
Marcus Ogunbiyi, Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, affirmed this commitment during a workshop in Abuja on Plant Genetic Resources Conservation and Use. He emphasized that conserving and sustainably using plant genetic diversity is crucial for Nigeria’s agricultural future.
Protecting Nigeria’s plant genetics, including seeds, landraces, wild relatives, and improved crop varieties, is essential for food production and responding to environmental challenges, Ogunbiyi said.
Nigeria faces genetic diversity loss due to climate change, habitat destruction, and genetic erosion, posing risks to agricultural adaptation, he warned.
Ogunbiyi cited inadequate conservation efforts and ongoing plant biodiversity loss as major challenges. He stressed that effective conservation ensures food availability and contributes to food security.
Nigeria boasts staple crops like yams, cassava, maize, millet, rice, and sorghum, central to its diet and traditions. The government is addressing conservation by strengthening institutions, upgrading infrastructure, and scaling up field collections across agro-ecological zones.
Ogunbiyi highlighted partnerships with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the African Union (AU), and the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. He also spotlighted the National Center for genetic Resources and Biotechnology (NACGRAB) as a key institution for conserving genetic materials.
“This National Genebank is critical in conserving and making available plant genetic resources for research, breeding, and development,” Ogunbiyi said.
What’s next
Stakeholders believe that workshops and advocacy are timely, pushing for policy action and public awareness to protect Nigeria’s plant biodiversity for future generations and ensure food security.