IITA research eases fears over Nigeria’s yam supplies

As Nigerians continue to express fears over government’s plans to begin exporting yams, respite appears to be in the offi ng with the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh assuring of no cause for alarm. DAVID AGBA reports

Research being conducted by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, IITA, in seed yam multiplication holds promise and could help Nigeria quadruple yam production, says Nigeria’s Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development, Audu Ogbeh. Ogbeh stated this while addressing reporters during a tour of IITA facilities at the end of a two-day visit to Ibadan, the Oyo state capital. The federal government recently revealed plans to export processed yam products to Britain, the U.S. and the European Union (EU).

Th e Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Audu Ogbeh, who disclosed this in Lagos, said that the exportation of fresh yam tubers had already started. He had said “Th e target markets are millions of Africans, especially Nigerians in the Diaspora, who want to buy and eat fresh yam. “For those who will prefer yam fl our and pounded yam, the ministry has identifi ed fi ve companies to process yam tubers into those products. “We will get the UK certifi ed standards for the exportation of those yam value chains. “We will also put in our own checks and balances to ensure that every export meets the set standard. “Th is is to ensure that the processed products are not rejected, once we start to export,” he said. Mr. Ogbeh said that Nigeria was under great pressure to export roasted cashew nuts to Japan and all categories of beans and sesame seeds, among others, to India. Owing to this, there had been hews and cries from various quarters that Nigerians have not had enough to talk less of exporting. The fear basically the fact that the Nigerian economy is still battling to get out of recession which devastated the citizenry. Th e minister had identifi ed lack of organisation and planning as the bane of the nation’s agricultural exports potential. He however, said that the ministry was working with relevant agencies to facilitate exportation activities in the agricultural sector.

Th e facilities toured include cassava fi elds, the afl asafe (a biocontrol product for controlling afl atoxins) production plant, the seed yam production facility through the aeroponics system, and a soybean inoculum fertilizer facility. Chief Ogbeh said the quality of research at IITA was reassuring and could help Nigeria to address food security challenges and rev up exports. The minister, who met with the Director General of IITA, Nteranya Sanginga, and other top officials of IITA, said the government would work more closely with IITA to ensure that technologies being developed by the Institute are scaled out to farmers. According to him, agriculture holds the future but it cannot be achieved through the use of hoes and cutlasses. “Agriculture is not just hoe and cutlasses but also research and science. Th at is what IITA is off ering. Th is institute has come to play a role not just for Nigeria but Africa,” he explained. He added that: “Agriculture has a future.

Agriculture has fortunes, and with an Institute like this, those who want to go into agriculture and make money should know that there is money to be made. With you (IITA) we can move forward.” On June 29, Nigeria launched the export of yams with 72 tons of tubers from the country to the United States and Europe, sparking concerns over the ability of the country to sustain exports owing to the high cost of seed yams which is exacerbated by a lack of knowledge on modern seed yam multiplication techniques. Traditionally, farmers are compelled to reserve as much as 30 percent of their harvest as seeds for the next planting season. However, researchers from IITA and national partners have developed the aeroponic system of seed yam multiplication whereby the vines of the crop are used in propagating seed yams rather than tubers.

Th rough these method, farmers may not need to reserve their harvest for the next planting season but can simply produce seed yams for the planting season using yam vines, according to Norbert Maroya, coordinator for the project— Yam Improvement for Incomes and Food Security in West Africa (YIIFSWA). Mr. Ogbeh, who visited the yam aeroponic facility to observe the production of seed yams noted that the establishment of aeroponic systems across the country would rev up the production of seed yams and could quadruple the production of the tuber crop. “One of the major problems facing yam growers is the issue of seedlings… Th ings (technologies) like this can quadruple the production of yams,” he said. Th e Director General of IITA said the institute would support the eff orts of the Nigerian government towards ensuring that the country is food secure. According to Mr. Sanginga, the goal of the institute is to work with governments in the context of their national agriculture strategies to eradicate hunger and poverty and create wealth.

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