Nigeria Has No Reason to Struggle with Food Security, Job Creation, Says Governor Uzodimma

Imo State Governor, Senator Hope Uzodimma has said Nigeria was well positioned to be a great agricultural nation and has no reason to be struggling to feed its population and create sustainable job opportunities for its youths.

He said the nation’s huge potential in agriculture had been demonstrated in the past when Nigeria not only fed its population, but exported agricultural produce to engender economic growth and national development.

Uzodimma expressed this view at the 12th Convocation lecture he delivered at the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture Umudike (MOUAU) titled, ‘Agriculture and National Development in a Diversified Economy: A Vision of Renewed Hope Through Town and Gown Entrepreneurial Partnerships.’

In the lecture read by the Imo State Commissioner for Tertiary Education, Prof. Victor Nwachukwu, who represented Uzodimma, noted that the three regional governments that constituted the Nigerian federation in the first Republic survived on agriculture.

“With agriculture, Michael Okpara made Eastern Nigeria’s economy the fastest growing one in sub-Saharan Africa,” he said.

“Okpara believed so much that agricultural reforms were crucial to Nigeria’s economic prosperity. His developmental model of 1962 to1968 focused on using agriculture to achieve industrialisation.”

He regretted that it was the discovery and exploration of crude oil that misled Nigeria into abandoning agriculture, which he described as “a natural gold mine provided by God to enable people have quality life”.

Uzodimma stated that with, “a geographical land mass of 923,768 square kilometers Nigeria is ranked the largest nation in Africa for agricultural activities,” hence every effort should geared towards diversifying the economy through agriculture.

“A nation that records progress in agriculture will experience a leap in national development through food security, employment generation, particularly in the rural areas, poverty reduction, rural development, sustainable and industrial development, social stability, trade and foreign exchange earnings,” he said.

The Imo Governor said Nigeria should emulate several nations around the globe, including African countries like Kenya, Uganda, that had made agriculture the mainstay of their economy.

He noted that even Ukraine which is currently at war with Russia has maintained its status as a major exporter of grains like corn and wheat hence Nigeria should wake up and intentionally make its agricultural sector more productive.

Uzodimma said even though agriculture still contributes to Nigeria’s GDP, “agricultural production in Nigeria is abysmally low” and so “a deliberate effort is needed to ensure that it contributes more than it does currently.”

“The ultimate aim should be to work towards making agriculture replace oil as the mainstay of our economy,” he said, adding that “like all non-renewable resources, the oil well will dry up one day.”

“I am sure that if our agriculture were to be more productive today, many more people would opt to become farmers, including me,” he said.

The Imo State Chief Executive called for modernisation of farming methods so that Nigeria could produce more food with fewer farm hands thereby, “freeing up workers and resources to build up industries”.

He said: “Any innovation in agriculture usually has a ripple effect. New technologies developed for farming often found uses in other areas.

“Machines invented for agriculture led to advancements in manufacturing. And the extra income from successful farming provides the money to invest in new businesses and industries.”

Uzodimma stressed the need for collaborations between universities and the communities, and the business sector, saying that such partnerships, “is essential for building a diversified Nigerian economy that provides opportunities for all.”

 Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo

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