Gilbert Ekugbe
Stakeholders in the nation’s agriculture value chain have emphasised the urgent need for Nigeria to adopt agricultural biotechnology to achieve increased food production in the country.
The move is coming at a time when the country is struggling to meet its food needs amid skyrocketing prices of food commodity in different parts of the country.
The Director General and Chief Executive Officer, National Biotechnology Development Agency (NBDA), Professor Abdullahi Mustapha, stated this at a one day editors’ interactive session on navigating biotech frontiers for accurate science communication in Lagos.
He stated that biotechnology is a transformative field that has the potential to address some of the most pressing challenges facing the nation and the world at large, adding that biotechnology is at the forefront of driving positive change from agriculture to healthcare and environmental conservation to industrial innovation.
“This will empower them to make informed decisions about its applications and impacts on our society. This Lagos editor’s interaction seeks to foster a collaborative relationship between the media and the agricultural biotechnology community. We hope to create an open and constructive dialogue, where we can share knowledge, address concerns, and work together to communicate agricultural biotechnology’s benefits and challenges effectively,” he added.
Also speaking, the Head, Open Forum on Agricultural Biotechnology (OFAB) & Biotech Awareness, Ms. Iweajunwa Sarah Ogochukwu, said that the objectives of the workshop among others was to enlighten, keep participants up-to-date with the developments in agricultural biotech as well as addressing the misconception about the safety of the technology while also building the capacity of participants for improved editorial decision-making on issues related to agric biotech.
On her part, the Director, Agricultural Biotechnology Department, National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA), Dr. Rose Gidado, said Nigerian agriculture is especially vulnerable to climate change and its associated occurrences of higher temperatures, extended droughts, floods, and other circumstances, reducing agricultural production across the country, particularly in the northern states.
“Biotechnology offers new tools for increasing agricultural productivity and protecting food crops from climate changes such as heat, floods, and drought,” Gidado said.
