A renowned professor of Agriculture, Nuhu Gworgwor has said that all President Bola Ahmed Tinubu needs to end the raging hunger and food insecurity bedevilling Nigeria is a strong political will to adequately implement agricultural policies.
The University Don disclosed this during a 45-page paper presentation at a two-day annual conference of the Forum of Former Deputy Governors in Nigeria held in Abuja on Tuesday and Wednesday.
According to him, the lack of strong political will by successive governments in Nigeria has made food insecurity a recurring challenge fine the country.
He noted that the desire to achieve food security has remained elusive in a growing population like Nigeria for the past years.
He blamed growing food insecurity, and malnutrition in Nigeria on insufficient food production, conflict and civil insecurity, gender inequality, climate change and natural disasters.
As a solution, Gworgwor, who is the dean of the Faculty of Agriculture at the University of Jos, Plateau State, said the government should adopt innovative measures, which include the use of improved seedlings climate-smarter agricultural practices, employing high technology like computerized machines, drones & artificial intelligence (AI).
“Food security is a very important phenomenon for the ever-growing population of Nigeria and the world at large, where every leader of the world desires to achieve such a feat. However, it is very clear from statistics that this desire has been elusive.
“But, with a very strong political will from any government could implement certain measures to achieve food security, which may include the use of improved seeds/seedlings, climate-smart agricultural practices, employing high technology like computerized machines, drones & artificial intelligence (AI), etc. The government policies, as well as the roles of public-private partnership, could enhance achieving food security if properly synergized and implemented to the later”, he said.
On his part, Halu Mohammed, a political expert at Bayero University, Kano stressed the need for citizens to hold the government and leaders accountable for governance.
“It’s time for Nigerians to demand accountability,” he concluded.
Meanwhile, Former Deputy Governor of Bauchi State, Abdulmalik Mahmood speaking at the sideline of the event on Wednesday said the Tinubu government had sufficiently tamed the Boko Haram menace in the North.
“The menace of Boko Haram has drastically reduced in the North, especially in the North East and North West”, he said.
Earlier, the chairman of the Conference and Former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Victor Attah told Nigerians not to expect magic from the Nigerian 1999 Constitution.
Hardship: What Tinubu govt needs to end hunger, food insecurity – Prof Gworgwor