Lagos, Feb.16, 2023: An environmental expert, Ms Gloria Bulus, has proffered the adoption of Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) techniques to ensure enhanced food production locally.
Bulus, the founder of Bridge-that-Gap Initiative, an environmental non-profit organisation, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Lagos.
CSA is an integrated approach to managing landscapes—cropland, livestock, forests and fisheries–that address the interlinked challenges of food security and climate change.
The environmentalist called for sensitisation of farmers on the need for the adoption of CSA techniques to boost food security.
“The best and most sustainable solution to ensure enhanced food production locally is the adoption of CSA techniques .
“The CSA technique supports local farmers to achieve food security and increase their profitability if strictly adhered to.
“We can sensitise local farmers on the adoption of CSA with support from groups or associations at local levels,” Bulus said.
She said that the CSA sensitisation techniques could be passed to the farmers by extension officers.
“The sensitisation on the adoption of CSA can also be carried out using local languages for better understanding by the farmers and for more effectiveness.
“Some actions for enhancing food security include improving the governance of food system, inclusive and responsible investments in agriculture and rural areas.
“Adequate sensitisation, empowering small farmer holders and strengthening social protection mechanisms for risk reduction are also means of ensuring food security,” she added.
Bulus also out listed workable CSA techniques that the farmers need to adopt to boost productivity and profitability.
“There are quite a number of climate smart agriculture techniques that have proved to be effective and can be adopted by local farmers.
“These include agroforestry, vertical sac farming, aqua-culture, green house farming, mulching, intercropping and the traditional crop rotation system.
“Also, integrated crop-livestock management, improved grazing, and improved water management which includes water harvesting are CSA techniques that can enhance food production,” Bulus said.
She noted that food security requires action in multiple dimensions considering the alarming rate at which the climate change impacts were increasing.
“If the adoption of the resolutions of the recently concluded COP27 are implemented, they will improve the quantity and quality of climate finance contributions to transform agriculture and food systems,” she said.
