Nigeria’s image received a boost on Thursday, October 19, 2017 before the international community as former Agriculture Minister, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, formally received the 2017 World Food Prize (WFP) Laureate award in the U.S.
Dr Akinwumi Adesina
Adesina was conferred with the laureate in Des Moines, U.S. during which he committed the $250,000 cash prize to set up a fund for financing African youths in agriculture.
Adesina had been announced as winner of the global feat by the WFP for his dogged determination and practical commitment to boosting agriculture and food supply chain both as Minister of Agriculture and President of AfDB.
Adesina, who is also the President of African Development Bank (AfDB), commended his staff for the shared passion to feed Africa.
The former minister expressed gratitude to ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo for nominating him as minister.
Adesina also thanked former President GoodLuck Jonathan for giving him the opportunity of his life to serve his country, Nigeria, as a minister.
He also thanked President Muhammadu Buhari for his strong support to achieve the feat.
“There wouldn’t be any rest for me until Africa feeds itself and for that we need the youth.
“And so even though I don’t have the cash in my hand, I hereby commit my 250,000 dollars as a cash prize for the WFP award to set up a fund fully dedicated to providing financing for the youth of Africa in agriculture to feed Africa.
“A day is coming very soon when the barns of Africa will be filled and all her children will be well fed, when millions of farmers will be able to send their kids to school.
“Then you will hear a new song across Africa; thank God our lives are better for us,’’Adesina said.
The Governor of Iowa, Kim Reynolds, who officially declared Adesina as the 2017 laureate winner of the WFP, said he was a man who grew out of poverty to create wealth.
Reynolds said that the laureate commitment and dedication in agriculture had impacted on lives of many, not only in Africa but around the world.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that former President of Ghana, John Mahama, attended the ceremony and other dignitaries from Nigeria and African countries.
Global leaders have pledged to take bold action to reduce suffering from non-communicable diseases (NCDs), which include the world’s leading killers – heart and lung diseases, cancer and diabetes.
Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organisation (WHO). Photo credit: AFP / FABRICE COFFRINI / Getty Images
The World Health Organisation (WHO) said governments endorsed the Montevideo Roadmap 2018-2030 on NCDs as a Sustainable Development Priority at the opening of a three-day global conference in the Uruguayan capital
“It is shocking to see the growing toll diseases like cancer and diabetes are taking on the people who can least afford healthcare,” WHO Director-General, Tedros Ghebreyesus, said.
The pledge followed world leaders’ agreement to reduce, by one-third, “premature” NCDs deaths by 2030, as part of the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
These diseases kill 40 million annually, more than any other cause of death, of which 15 million occur prematurely among people aged 30-70 years, and seven million in low- and low-middle income countries.
“Governments must act on pledges to prevent these diseases in the first place, and to ensure that people can obtain services to treat them.
“Failure to do this imposes massive costs on individuals and communities. It totally contradicts global commitments to sustainable development,” Ghebreyesus added.
The Montevideo Roadmap highlights the need for coordinated and coherent action from all sectors and the whole of society, as many of the main drivers of ill health lie beyond the control of health ministries, systems and professionals.
According to the WHO chief, non-State actors, including civil society and industry, have important roles to play.
In addition to improved disease detection and treatment, the Roadmap also points out that the bulk of NCD deaths could have been prevented by action, such as against tobacco, unhealthy diets and harmful use of alcohol.
Among challenges identified in the Roadmap are uneven and insufficient progress to reduce premature deaths from NCDs and influence of the private sector on governments to prioritize trade over public health goals.
The other is lack of high-level political leadership to ensure that health promotion and NCD prevention and control are part of all areas of government policy.
Adhanom, who last week announced the launch of a new WHO high-level commission on NCDs, added: “This conference is a critical opportunity to accelerate efforts to get ahead of non-communicable diseases.
“We must be prepared to have some tough conversations, and to take brave action.
“One vital step is for all countries to follow trailblazers, like Uruguay, that have ratified the protocol to eliminate the illicit trade in tobacco products.
“Ensuring that this protocol can come into force next year is key to advancing the impact of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.”
The Montevideo Roadmap would guide global preparations for the UN General Assembly’s third High-level Meeting on NCDs next year.
The Roadmap would assess progress in meeting the target of reducing premature NCDs deaths by 25 per cent by 2025 and then by one-third by 2030.
The Ministry of Transportation has inaugurated a 19-man Committee to finalise the review of the National Transport Policy draft for the country’s Transportation Sector.
Rotimi Amaechi, Minister of Transportation
A statement by the ministry’s Director of Press, Mrs Yetunde Sonaike, made this known in Abuja on Thursday, October 19, 2017.
Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, who inaugurated the committee, charged the members to produce the final document, so that it could be ratified by the appropriate authorities.
Amaechi, represented by the Permanent Secretary, Sabiu Zakari, recalled that the National Transport Policy document had gone to the Federal Executive Council where it was referred to the National Economic Council (NEC) for necessary input.
“The NEC afterwards made some observations which involved making the Policy Statement and Objectives to be Specific, Measurable, Accurate, Reliable, Time Bound (SMART) and Implementable.
“A chapter of the draft was dedicated to implementation strategy and role definition,
“The draft also noted that the Pipeline and Aviation modes of the policy document should be further enriched.”
The minister was quoted as saying that the merging of the ministry made it easy to get the aviation subsector to embellish its component.
Ameachi said that the newly created Department of Road Transport and Mass Transit Administration in the ministry had also enhanced the updated document.
“In order to further enrich the document, additional inputs were received from the Ministry of Petroleum Resources and provision was also made to accommodate Public Private Partnership (PPP) in the procurement of the National Carriers in the sector.
“A chapter for implementation time frame and the role of stakeholders was also included in the updated draft,” he said.
Responding, the Chairperson of the committee, Mrs Mfon Usoro, thanked the minster for the confidence repose in them and promised to work assiduously with other members.
She said that they would work within the time frame to achieve the objectives of the government in the transportation sector.
Usoro added that the ministry was following worldwide consultations of stakeholders which would give the document wide acceptability in line with the international best practices.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that membership of the Committee were drawn from the various Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), including the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), and state commissioners, among others.
“Agriculture remains a key sector that plays major role in poverty reduction in Lagos State and Nigeria at large, and both (Lagos and Nigeria) can contribute to climate change mitigation and achieving sustainable peace for growth and development with total commitment.”
L-R: Ganiyu Okanlawon, Special Adviser to Lagos Governor on Food Security; Oke Olumuyiwa, representing Commissioner for Agriculture; Taiwo Aiyedun, Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Civic Engagement; and Chinasa Asonye, at the stakeholders’ workshop organised by West Africa Network for Peacebuilding (WANEP)-Nigeria on Thursday, October 19, 2017 in Lagos
These were the words of Lagos State Commissioner for Agriculture, Oluwatoyin Suarau, at the stakeholders’ workshop organised by West Africa Network for Peacebuilding (WANEP) – Nigeria on Thursday, October 19, 2017.
He was represented by Oke Olumuyiwa at the event themed: “Impact of Climate Change on Small Scale Farming in Lagos State” held at Regency Hotel, GRA, Ikeja.
According to him, climate change is no longer a new phenomenon, but people do not still work towards mitigating the effect, citing the engagement in climate-unfriendly traditional practices.
He noted the impact attributable to climate change on agriculture in Lagos to include: increase in temperature (both soil and water), change in rainfall pattern, shift in agricultural season and pattern, erosion, and sea level rise.
Ogbonge Women and workshop organisers campaigning for United for Food
Since the pattern of agriculture has changed, he made case for more funding in agriculture in order to address the changes and produce more food, thereby reduce poverty.
In her presentation at the event, Lagos State coordinator of WANEP, Titi Akosa, noted that national budget for agriculture this year was just 1.6 per cent against the recommended 10 per cent by international organisations Nigeria belongs to.
To achieve sustainable agriculture, the commissioner enumerated a number of activities Lagos has embarked on, including: establishment of functional Climate Change Desk Office (CCDO), Agric-Youth Empowerment Scheme (Agric-YES), Rice for Job programme, Poultry Estate development in Ikorodu, Piggery Estate at Ikorodu, Fish Farm estates in Ikorodu and Epe, and promotion of greenhouse vegetable production under the School Agricultural Programme (SAP).
“In view of the few afore-mentioned, among other initiatives and interventions of Lagos State Ministry of Agriculture, you can see that we are totally committed to reducing poverty and achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Nigeria,” he said.
In her welcome address, national network coordinator of WANEP, Bridget Osakwe, had asserted that development is elusive where there is hunger.
She believes in the age-long saying that a hungry man is an angry man. For her, where there is no food, there is no peace, and without peace, there is no development.
In his goodwill message, Special Adviser to Lagos State Governor on Food Security, Ganiyu Okanlawon, said in addressing human security, agriculture and food security must be looked into, adding that tackling hunger would minimise social ills.
One of the participants, Wale Oyekoya, said Governor Akinwunmi Ambode “has been one of the listening governors of Lagos”.
The commercial farmer and media analyst believes that Nigeria has no business importing food.
He, however, lashed federal government officials who mooted the idea of exporting yam without working on standardisation of the produce.
Every day in 2016, 15,000 children died before their fifth birthday, 46% of them – or 7,000 babies – died in the first 28 days of life, according to a new UN report.
A couple with a newborn
“Levels and Trends in Child Mortality 2017”, reveals that although the number of children dying before the age of five is at a new low– 5.6 million in 2016, compared with nearly 9.9 million in 2000 – the proportion of under-five deaths in the newborn period has increased from 41% to 46% during the same period.
“The lives of 50 million children under-five have been saved since 2000, a testament to the serious commitment by governments and development partners to tackle preventable child deaths,” said UNICEF Chief of Health, Stefan Swartling Peterson. “But unless we do more to stop babies from dying the day they are born, or days after their birth, this progress will remain incomplete. We have the knowledge and technologies that are required – we just need to take them where they are most needed.”
At current trends, 60 million children will die before their fifth birthday between 2017 and 2030, half of them newborns, according to the report released by UNICEF, the World Health Organisation, the World Bank and the Population Division of UNDESA which make up the Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (IGME).
Most newborn deaths occurred in two regions: Southern Asia (39%) and sub-Saharan Africa (38%). Five countries accounted for half of all new-born deaths: India (24%), Pakistan (10%), Nigeria (9%), the Democratic Republic of the Congo (4%) and Ethiopia (3%).
“To achieve universal health coverage and ensure more newborns survive and thrive, we must serve marginalised families,” says Dr Flavia Bustreo, Assistant Director-General for Family, Women’s and Children’s Health at WHO. “To prevent illness, families require financial power, their voices to be heard and access to quality care. Improving quality of services and timely care during and after childbirth must be prioritised.”
The report notes that many lives can be saved if global inequities are reduced. If all countries achieved the average mortality of high-income countries, 87% of under-five deaths could have been averted and almost five million lives could have been saved in 2016.
“It is unconscionable that in 2017, pregnancy and child birth are still life-threatening conditions for women, and that 7,000 newborns die daily,” said Tim Evans, Senior Director of Health Nutrition and Population at the World Bank Group. “The best measure of success for Universal Health Coverage is that every mother should not only be able to access health care easily, but that it should be quality, affordable care that will ensure a healthy and productive life for her children and family. We are committed to scaling up our financing to support country demand in this area, including through innovative mechanisms like the Global Financing Facility (GFF). ”
Pneumonia and diarrhea top the list of infectious diseases which claim the lives of millions of children under-five globally, accounting for 16% and 8% of deaths, respectively. Preterm birth complications and complications during labour or child birth were the causes of 30% of newborn deaths in 2016. In addition to the 5.6 million under-5 deaths, 2.6 million babies are stillborn each year, the majority of which could be prevented.
Ending preventable child deaths can be achieved by improving access to skilled health-professionals during pregnancy and at the time of birth; lifesaving interventions, such as immunization, breastfeeding and inexpensive medicines; and increasing access to water and sanitation, that are currently beyond the reach of the world’s poorest communities.
For the first time, mortality data for older children age 5 to 14 was included in the report, capturing other causes of death such as accidents and injuries. Approximately 1 million children aged 5 to 14 died in 2016.
“This new report highlights the remarkable progress since 2000 in reducing mortality among children under age 5,” said UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs Mr. LIU Zhenmin. “Despite this progress, large disparities in child survival still exist across regions and countries, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. Yet many deaths at these ages are easily preventable through simple, cost-effective interventions administered before, during and immediately after birth. Reducing inequities and reaching the most vulnerable newborns, children and mothers are essential for achieving the SDG target on ending preventable childhood deaths and for ensuring that no one will be left behind.”
The report also notes that:
In sub-Saharan Africa, estimates show that 1 child in 36 dies in the first month, while in the world’s high income countries, the ratio is 1 in 333.
Unless the rate of progress improves, more than 60 countries will miss the UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) to end preventable deaths of newborns by 2030 and half would not meet the target of 12 neonatal deaths per 1,000 live births by 2050. These countries account for about 80% of neonatal deaths in 2016.
The Green Climate Fund (GCF) has transferred the first tranche of climate finance under the Egypt Renewable Energy Financing Framework. The project, undertaken with GCF partner, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), will support Egypt’s Sustainable Energy Strategy, financing investments in private renewable energy producers.
Executive Director, Green Climate Fund (GCF), Howard Bamsey
The transfer of $65.8 million is the first disbursement under this project, which will eventually reach a total GCF investment of $154.7 million.
It takes GCF’s total disbursements for its project portfolio beyond the $100 million milestone, demonstrating progress in moving to action on the ground for mitigation and adaptation in support of developing countries’ ambitions under the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.
“This major investment reflects GCF’s support for the Egyptian government’s Sustainable Energy Strategy, and it shows what can be achieved through our partnership with EBRD,” said Howard Bamsey, GCF Executive Director. “We are delighted that funds are already flowing, hardly six months after the project was approved by the GCF Board. The Green Climate Fund is picking up the pace in implementing its project portfolio, and we have now reached the milestone of $100 million in project disbursements,” he explained.
The Egypt Renewable Energy Financing Framework pools the resources of GCF and EBRD together with other investors in support of Egypt’s Feed-in tariff (FiT) scheme. Individual investments in Egypt’s renewables sector under the Framework have already begun.
The Framework was approved by GCF’s Board in April of this year. The transfer takes place following the recent meeting of the GCF Board in Cairo earlier this month, at which further project approvals raised the value of the GCF portfolio to $2.65 billion.
Achieving the goals of the Paris Climate Change Agreement and true sustainable development will take broad-based engagement, especially by the private sector to drive innovation and investment, participants at the opening of Latin American and Caribbean Carbon Forum in Mexico City have been told.
Delegates at the opening of LACCF2017 in Mexico
Mexico suffered a serious earthquake last month that resulted in terrible loss of life and destruction. Mexico and Mexico City nonetheless pushed through with LACCF 2017, which has brought together private and public sector participants looking for ways to spur climate action under the theme: “Advancing the Paris Agreement – From Targets to Actions”.
“I think what has happened, and what is happening, underscores how vulnerable we are as human beings,” said Enrique Lendo, Head of International Affairs, Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources, Mexico, reflecting on the earthquake and the numerous destructive hurricanes that have occurred in recent months. “They are a sign we need to renew our efforts, and strengthen our efforts,” said Mr. Lendo, citing innovative policy choices, such as carbon pricing and market-based instruments to drive investment in climate action, before officially opening LACCF 2017.
Countries in 2016 adopted the Paris Climate Change Agreement aimed at keeping global temperature rise to below 2oC, through concerted climate action in all sectors. Meeting the goal will take a great deal of investment and resources; thus, strong engagement by the private sector and a broad range of non-state actors, including the most vulnerable.
“Adopting urgent measures to combat climate change requires [one] to listen closely and attentively to all voices; to the private sector, industry, academia, civil society, indigenous peoples, since it is all of us who live the consequences of climate change,” said Antonio Molpeceres, UN Resident Coordinator in Mexico. “It is necessary that we all take part in these discussions, so that we are all actors in the creation and materialisation of a true paradigm change that will lead us to a sustainable human development path.”
This is the eleventh annual LACCF and the second time the event is being held back-to-back with the workshop of the Low Emission Development Strategies (LEDS) – LAC platform, creating the largest climate event in the region: The 2017 Latin America and Caribbean Climate Week.
Events like LACCF are important venues not just for inspiring greater climate action but to express views that can make their way into international negotiations. Last year when they met in Morocco, countries established the Marrakech Partnership for Global Climate Action to encourage and coordinate this broad engagement.
The objective is to “turn countries’ Nationally Determined Contributions under the Paris Agreement into concrete investment plans,” said Veronica Zavala, Country Representative, Inter-American Development Bank. She cited the need to “decarbonise our energy sector, which accounts for 40 percent of emissions in the region,” and pointed to the ample solar, wind and ocean power available in Latin American and the Caribbean.
“Isolated endeavors cannot contribute radically to stabilise economies and mitigate the effects of climate change,” said Emilio Uquillas, Representative-director in Bolivia for the Latin American Development Bank. Mr. Uquillas stressed that the effects of climate change will be felt “as usual by the most vulnerable sectors of society” and called for “a scaling up of efforts.”
The bulk of that scaling up will be done through investment by the business community, which is “managing enormous risk” from climate change and from its investments in climate action, said Dirk Forrister, Chief Executive Officer and President of the International Emissions Trading Association. “The business community if also looking around the corner to opportunity.”
The inclusive approach called for in the Paris Agreement will be carried forward when countries meet in Bonn, Germany, next month for the UN Climate Change Conference, COP23, under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, whose Executive Secretary, Patricia Espinosa, is Mexico’s former Minister of Foreign Affairs, from 2006 to 2012. Ms. Espinosa is attending an important preparatory meeting in Fiji, which will preside over COP23.
“For countries to achieve their commitments under the Paris Agreement, the private sector and public sector must work together to mobilize investment where it’s needed,” said Ms. Espinosa on behalf of the 10 co-organisers of LACCF 2017 in advance of the event. “Therefore, regional events like LACCF are taking on an increasingly important role linking investment to investment-worthy opportunities for climate action.”
Market approaches and carbon pricing are important means of incentivising climate action, such as was created by the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) under the UNFCCC’s Kyoto Protocol. Participants in LACCF are keen to understand how carbon pricing mechanisms will evolve and inform implementation of such approaches under the Paris Agreement. Mexico, for example has placed a moderate carbon tax on eight fuels. The country is considering how those obligated under the carbon tax could pay using saleable Certified Emissions Reductions created by CDM projects, everything from wind power projects to projects that reduce or avoid industrial emissions. More generally, countries in the LAC region, including Chile and Colombia, have been leaders in the development of carbon pricing mechanisms and are actively working to build multi-country engagement models. Key takeaways from the High-Level Commission on Carbon Prices were also discussed.
The report’s conclusions – that countries should pursue carbon pricing now, as an essential element of a multi-faceted strategy – resonated strongly with government representatives participating in the panel discussions. Industry participants in the Forum noted that a strong and predictable carbon price trajectory, as called for in the Commission’s report, would help provide the stability the private sector needs to move investment into long-term, climate-friendly projects, dramatically increasing the total amount of resources available to address climate change.
LACCF 2017 comprises high-level plenaries – including an address by former Mexican President Felipe Calderón scheduled for Friday, 20 October – workshops and roundtables to share the latest on: climate finance, carbon pricing, sectoral climate action and data and information for transparency. It brings together key players from the private and public sectors – cooperating agencies, potential investors, project developers, service providers – to share the latest on climate change action. It is a space where climate aspirations turn into climate action.
LACCF is co-organised by: Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources, Mexico; United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change; UNEP DTU Partnership; United Nations Development Programme; World Bank Group; Development Bank of Latin America; Inter-American Development Bank; Latin American Energy Organisation; United Nations Environment Programme; and International Emissions Trading Association.
President Muhammadu Buhari says Nigeria remains proud of its former Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, for the winning the 2017 World Food Prize.
Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank Group
Adesina, who is the President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), was on Thursday, October 19, 2017 presented with the $250,000 prize and Laureate sculpture at a ceremony in the United States.
The President’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, said Buhari stated this in a video message to the AfDB President.
The presidential aide, in a statement issued in Abuja on Thursday, quoted President Buhari as saying: “I received with delight the cheery news of your award as 2017 World Food Prize Laureate.
“Certainly this did not come to me and many Nigerians as a surprise, given your antecedents and contributions to the development of agriculture across the African continent.
“We are very proud of you.
“According to the World Food Prize Foundation, you won the prize for driving change in African agriculture for over 25 years and improving food security for millions across the continent.
“Your choice as the winner of the World Food Prize is a clear recognition and appreciation of your long standing contributions, reflected in your several roles and activities which promote social economic development.
“By dint of hard work, persistence, diligent efforts and God’s sufficient grace, you have risen above many limitations to emerge as a notable figure and a true champion.
“Your life story mirrors the resilience of the African spirit and doggedness for which Nigerians are well known.
“On behalf of the government and people of Nigeria, I congratulate you and rejoice with you, your family and the AfDB family on this well-deserved honour.
“Congratulations!’’
Prior to serving as Nigerian Minister of Agriculture from 2010 to 2015, Adesina was a senior economist at West African Rice Development Association (WARDA) in Bouaké, Ivoary Coast, from 1990 to 1995.
Adesina was named Forbes African Man of the Year for his reform of Nigerian agriculture.
He introduced more transparency into the fertiliser supply chain through the popular E-Wallet system of fertilizer distribution in Nigeria.
The AfDB President had also worked at the Rockefeller Foundation as a senior scientist in 1988, and from 1999 to 2003, represented the Foundation in southern Africa.
The former Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon, appointed Adesina as one of 17 global leaders to spearhead the defunct Millennium Development Goals.
At the just concluded conference on biotechnology in Abuja recently, Dr Rufus Ebegba, Director-General, National Biosafety Management Agency (NBMA), expressed concern that many Nigerians were not supporting the introduction of genetically modified crops.
L-R: Environment Minister of State, Ibrahim Usman Jibril; Director General/CEO of National Biosafety Management Agency (NBMA); and Deputy Vice Chancellor, Academics, Nile University in Nigeria, Prof. Faruk Gursoy, at the Third National Biosafety Conference, in Abuja
“Although the technology is about 26 years old, Nigeria has yet to fully embrace the technology based on so many factors.
“The agency has the capability to ensure that the practice of modern biotechnology and the use of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) which are products of biotechnology do not have any adverse impact Nigerians,’’ he said.
Ebegba said the conference was unique because it was the first time the agency decided to invite both those who supported the technology and those who did not across the country.
“This conference is aimed at addressing issues surrounding it and we have also invited those who are constantly condemned the agency in spite its model achievement.
“The agency has tried as much as possible to convince Nigerians on what they can do to protect them from any adverse potential effects as the result of the use of the technology,’’ he told the participants.
According to him, GMOs involve organisms, plant, or animal, which genetic material has been manipulated through genetic engineering.
But critics of the technology insist that the practice of GMO is fraught with disapproval by many individuals and organisations across the country, although the campaigners for its introduction believe it increases food supply.
They observe that Nigeria joined the league of countries in support of GMO produce when the presidency signed the National Bio-safety Agency Bill to law in 2015.
However, some stakeholders in the agricultural sector see the passage of the bill as a good development that can launch the country to commercial production of genetically modified crops with the capacity to improve the livelihood of Nigerians.
In spite of this, critics insist that there are more questions to be answered if the country will accept genetically modified crops.
In the light of this, concerned stakeholders in agricultural sector and food scientists attempted to supply evidences to support the usefulness of the products in other developed countries during the conference.
For instance, Mrs Bibiana Kipkorir, Programme Officer, International Service for the Acquisition of Agric-Biotech Application, said credible scientific evidence should inform the decision to reject or to accept genetically modified crops by Nigerians.
She stressed the need to sensitise the grassroots to the issues surrounding the GMOs to debunk the misconceptions of the public on the safety of the crops.
He said the organisation had a strong outreach programme at the grassroots that could even allay the fears of women and young farmers about the use of the technology.
Assuring the public of the safety of the technology, National Biotechnology Development Agency also insists that the efficacy and safety of the products are guaranteed under scientific proof.
The agency notes that there has never been any negative effect recorded from any genetically modified organism anywhere in the world.
It believes that the fear for GMO foods is based on falsehood, observing that biotechnology is as old as history and it is capable of improving the economy.
Similarly, Prof. Abiodun Dunloye, Vice-President, Nigeria Biological Safety Association, highlighted the importance of biotechnology, insisting that the GMOs had been around for some years in Nigeria and people had been consuming them.
“Human beings are always sceptical about innovations and GMOs have always been a controversial issue since its inception, hence dissemination of its information should be addressed with caution,’’ he observed.
According to Dunloye, humans choose certain qualities over others in plants, so they tinker with the genetics of crops to get the varieties they want; bigger, tastier or juicier.
“Take the sweet potato for example, studies show that sweet potatoes were bred some 8,000 years ago out of the swollen parts of regular potato roots.
“Making a crop that will be resistant to herbicide in that regard makes it much easier and cheaper for farmers to control weeds while producing high yields.
“Soon, other GMO seeds were developed, including cotton, rice, sugarcane and tomatoes, among others, with the intention of making these crops resistant to insects, diseases, herbicides and pesticides.
In his contribution, Alhaji Ibrahim Jibril, Minister of State for Environment said the government acknowledged the role of agriculture in long-term economic growth and food security.
He said the government was working to ensure food security, describing the introduction of biotechnology as an alternative economic method of moving the country forward.
The minister said many lies had been told to discredit GMO products, making Nigerians to be sceptical about the technology.
He acknowledged that though there might be some tiny negative sides, its positive sides were enormous.
“We will not be afraid of receiving criticism, but we want constructive criticisms, those who are for and against this technology are invited to share their views and express what they feel, so that together we can understand the future of biotechnology,’’ the minister said.
He promised that the Federal Government would partner with all stakeholders in exploring the use of relevant technology that would provide adequate food for Nigerians.
He also noted that the government was committed to adopting any safe technology that would facilitate its food security and economic recovery drive for the country.
“This is aptly encapsulated in government’s Agriculture Policy –The Green Alternative and the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan.
“This calls for a combination of tools, processes and safe technologies, in a complementary way, to provide a form of economic diversification.
“This would bring a new set of skill requirements thereby expanding job opportunities and this is where modern biotechnology comes,’’ he said.
Observers, therefore, note that although there are concerns about whether or not the country should popularise GMO crops, approval of the technology seems to remain part of methods of achieving economic growth and food security.
An environmentalist, Mr Habib Omotosho, has urged industrialists and business owners to use solar and other renewable sources of energy for their operations to reduce the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions.
Rooftop solar power panels
Omotosho, the National Coordinator, Environmental Advancement Initiatives, an NGO, said this in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Thursday, October 19, 2017.
He said that if solar and other renewable energy systems were used for the operations of industries and small businesses, it would aid the Federal Government’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The ecologist urged industrialists and small business owners to emulate some of their colleagues, particularly those in Lagos State, who relied solely on solar energy for their uninterrupted power supply.
“When I encountered some people who operated telecommunications and barbing salon businesses with solar power in Lagos, they told me that many customers patronised their shops because of regular power supply,” he said.
Omotosho said that renewable energy could be harvested from wind and sun using certain devices.
He said that solar and other renewable energy sources would expand Nigeria’s industrialisation efforts and create jobs, while reducing environmental pollution in the country.
According to him, it will also increase energy security and reduce fossil fuels import costs as well as greenhouse gas emissions.
“To this end, the development of solar and other means of renewable energy through off-grid will enable the telecoms industry to drive the development of rural and urban communities.
“Low carbon growth drives rural economy through off-grid power by generating power using water wheels without the need for dams,’’ he said.
