Vice-President Kashim Shettima says the federal government has launched the ‘Back to Farm’ initiative to support displaced farmers.
Shettima spoke at a panel session at the 56th annual meeting
of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland.
In a statement on Thursday, Stanley Nkwocha, senior special
assistant to the president on media, said the event was themed “When Food
Becomes Security”.
Shettima said the ‘Back to Farm’ initiative is designed to
resettle displaced farmers by providing agricultural inputs, insurance, and
access to capital to restart food production.
The vice-president said insecurity remains a major
constraint to food production, as many conflict-affected areas overlap with
Nigeria’s major food-producing zones.
“Most of the food baskets of our nation are
security-challenged; That is why we are creating food security corridors and
strengthening community-based security engagements so farmers can return safely
to their land,” he said.
Shettima said the federal government no longer treats food
security as a narrow agricultural issue but as a strategic pillar for
governance, economic stability, and regional cohesion.
“In Nigeria, we don’t look at food security purely as an
agricultural issue. It is a macroeconomic, security and governance issue,” he
said.
“Our focus is to use food security as a pillar for national
security, regional cohesion and stability.”
He also said Nigeria is responding to global trends and
climate challenges by developing resilient food systems suited to its
ecological zones.
“Nigeria is a very large country, and there is an incestuous
relationship between economy and ecology,” he said.
“In the Sahelian North, we are dealing with desertification,
deforestation and drought. In the riverine South and parts of the North
Central, flooding is our major challenge.”
Shettima added that the government is promoting
drought-resistant, flood-tolerant, and early-maturing varieties of staple crops
such as rice, sorghum, and millet, while redesigning food systems in
flood-prone areas to withstand climate shocks.
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