From Fred Ezeh, Abuja
New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD) has said that its interventions in the agricultural sector and other human capital development have yielded the desired results.
National Coordinator of AUDA-NEPAD, Gloria Akobundu, told journalists at a press conference in Abuja that at the beginning of 2022, the agency with the support of partners designed agricultural intervention programmes for the empowerment of small scale farmers and was impressed that desired results have been achieved.
She said the agency facilitated foreign investment under the platform of the AUDA-NEPAD Nigeria Smallholder Farmers Project; Spades and 3D-AG Investment on innovative strengthening of smallholder farmers’ capabilities towards productive land restoration.
Akobundu confirmed that AUDA-NEPAD also coordinated a project that resulted in the restoration of 100 million hectares of deforested land, mitigated climate change and encroachment in the African continent.
She, however, suggested adequate deployment of Juncao technology, a Chinese technology which, she said, has proven its efficiency and revolves around the trio of fodder production, land reclamation and mushroom production which are essential components of pasture development, environmental management and climate change mitigation.
She explained that Juncao technology is a technique that utilises Juncao as medium or raw material through the decomposition, promotion and symbiosis of fungi, to produce mushroom, functional food, feed, fertiliser, biomass energy, biological materials and to apply in environmental protection.
Akobundu confirmed that the innovative technology has potential to boost the efforts of the Federal Government to make the best use of huge agricultural resources, other natural resources towards sustainable livelihood as enshrined in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) charter.
She highlighted that domesticating Juncao technology will create hundreds of direct and indirect jobs, promote agro businesses, enhance nutrition, curb youth restiveness and boost security through gainful youths engagement and value to the economy.
World Bank records had indicated that agriculture represents a nearly $8 trillion industry globally, stressing the need for Nigeria to harness and leverage the application of advanced technology such as Juncao to benefit from this $8 trillion industry, in addition to contributing to protecting the planet, enhancing food and nutrition security.