By EricJames Ochigbo
A coalition of Civll Society Organisations (CSO) and farmer groups have urged the Federal Government to adopt agroecology as a core component of national agricultural and climate policy to curb effects of climate change in the country.
The coalition made the call at a roundtable organised by Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) for a public presentation of a Participatory Action Research (PAR) Report and a Complementary Policy Brief in Abuja.
They recommended that agroecology which simply means a farming system that is in harmony with nature, should be backed by dedicated financing, research, extension services and market development.
The theme of the roundtable was “Agroecology for a Climate-Resilient and Inclusive Food System in Nigeria-Translating Evidence from Participatory Action Research into Policy Action.
Speaking on behalf of the coalition, Mrs Mariann Bassey-Olsson said that Nigeria was not short of knowledge on food and farming.
According to her, farmers and communities have generations of experience; conserving seeds, building soil, managing biodiversity, adapting to changing conditions and producing food in ways suited to their environments
She said that stakeholders must work hand-in-gloves to develop and implement a policy that would protect Nigeria’s food system and the environment in general.
The lead researcher, Prof. Adeoluwa Olugbenga said that an aguacology, and should be mainstream into general agricultural policy in the country.
He said that farmers should be encouraged to practice it, while recommending that government should also pay more attention agroecology
“Government should pay more attention, may not be equal attention currently given to conventional agriculture; even if it just 40 percent, It should be intentionally apportioned to agroecological.
“This is because with evidence on ground, we know that agroecology practices, are proven to mitigate climate change and if climate change in terms of agricultural production is mitigated, then we can have more food,” he said.
The coalition called for the explicit recognition of agroecology in national agricultural, climate and food security policies, as well as its integration into Nigeria’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
It also recommended reforms to agricultural extension services to promote participatory and farmer-to-farmer learning, alongside the establishment of agroecology demonstration plots and farmer field schools across the country.
The coalition urged government to redirect public research funding toward participatory agroecological research and strengthen collaboration among universities, research institutions and farmer networks.
They said that agroecology should no longer be treated as a marginal or experimental approach, as evidence from participatory research demonstrated its potential to improve productivity, resilience, livelihoods and ecosystems while empowering farmers to drive agricultural innovation.