Food security: Shettima seeks ‘urgent’ US support to address agricultural challenges

Vice-President, Kashim Shettima, has requested the assistance of the United States government for President Bola Tinubu’s food security agenda.

According to a statement on Wednesday by Stanley Nkwocha,  senior special assistant to the president on media and communications, Shettima spoke during a meeting with Cary Fowler, US special envoy for global food security.

The vice president said Nigeria requires urgent support, from the US government, “be it technical or otherwise, towards addressing challenges in our agricultural sector”. 

“Mechanisation is absolutely essential, good quality seeds, fertilisation, improved agricultural practices, smart agriculture, these are the solutions we seek because the whole mantra is on increase in yield, it is about improving productivity. It goes beyond the acreage that is used for production,” Shettima said. 

“So, I am here surrounded by other stakeholders who have all the figures, facts, and knowledge to make this partnership easy and smooth sailing.”

He also reassured the US special envoy of the readiness of Tinubu’s administration to collaborate with relevant stakeholders to improve agricultural productivity, not only in the country but across Africa. 

According to Shettima, Nigeria will sustain existing relationships with partners in the agricultural sector, even as he noted that the country will nurture the alliance.

“We will nurture it because more than ever before, we are facing food security challenges. We have to think outside the box, we have to look for ingenious solutions that can help us to overcome the challenges,” he said. 

“I believe with your support (the political will is there now more than ever before), together, we can save humanity and serve the human race.”

In his response, Fowler said the US government, in partnership with other stakeholders, has launched an agricultural initiative, assuring that Africa would be prioritised.

“What we are trying to do here in the US, which we coined the ‘Vision for Adapted Crops and Soil’, is a partnership between the US, the AU, and the FAO,” Fowler said.

“In summary, what we are trying to do working with African countries is to help them, right from the national level down to the farmers, to manage the soil more properly and to ensure sustainability and productivity (that is on the soil side). 

“On the crop side, we are extremely concerned about climate change and its effect on Africa. So, this programme that we have with the AU and FAO is focused on Africa.

“We need your partnership, we need your political support to push this. We want this programme to be African-led.”

He added that the programme, with a $100 million investment, “will look at indigenous African crops that have long suffered from massive underinvestment.