African Development Bank (AfDB) has supported Nigeria with $134 million for the cultivation of essential crops such as rice, maize, cassava, and soybeans, aiming to enhance food production.
The Bank’s President Akinwunmi Adesina, announced that the amount would be allocated to support this initiative, following his visit to the Centre for Dryland Agriculture (CDA) at Bayero University, Kano.
Adesina told reporters that the bank is set to back Nigeria in cultivating 300,000 hectares of both rice and maize, alongside 150,000 hectares of cassava and 50,000 hectares of soybeans for the planting season of 2024.
“This March, the AfDB is supporting Nigeria to cultivate 118,000 hectares of heat-tolerant varieties of wheat and another 150,000 hectares of maize.
“We live in an era of climate change and yet only three per cent of African agriculture is under irrigation. We have to make sure we help our farmers with information that is timely and appropriate.
“We have no alternative but to adapt to climate change; adopt better ways of using water, particularly in the cultivation of dry land crops that are more resilient and tolerant,” Adesina said.
Additionally, Adesina mentioned that the AfDB would offer grants to the CDA and work in collaboration with it to develop a center focused on weather pattern predictions and information collection, enabling farmers to plant more effectively
“We will work with the center to become one of the centers of excellence in technology.
“We will also support youths to develop their business ideas into reality with our 20,000-dollar grant on Agri Pitch’ and Agri Hacking,” he said.
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