Posted on November, 22, 2023 at 07:31 am
For enhanced commodity production in both sub-regions, the West and Central Africa Collaborative Wheat Network (WECAWheat) would hold a two-day summit from November 22 to 23 in Abuja.
With the theme, ‘Upscaling Investment in the Wheat Value Chain in West and Central Africa’, the meeting seeks to accelerate wheat production, transformation and investments within the two sub-regions.
In a statement yesterday, WECAWheat said the summit is to change the narrative surrounding wheat cultivation in West and Central Africa, emphasising the importance of the plant to food security in both sub-regions.
The Regional Network Coordinator of WECAWheat, Prof. Benjamin Ubi, in the statement, noted that wheat cultivation holds immense potential in West and Central Africa, especially with favourable agro-ecologies supporting both irrigated and rain-fed production.
He stated that the product cultivation is not new in the sub-regions, particularly in northern Nigeria, which has a long history of planting, coupled with the favourable micro-ecologies in Cross River, Plateau and Adamawa states.
Ubi added: “Drawing inspiration from Brazil’s success story in achieving wheat self-sufficiency, the summit aims to leverage the growing political will in member-countries and the support of international partners for wheat sector transformation.”
“The summit is also geared towards galvanising collective efforts towards the common goal of wheat sector transformation rather than competition among stakeholders.
“Participants will seek sustained funding, infrastructure and the delivery of appropriate science and technologies, including quality seeds, to enhance wheat productivity, production and value addition.”
The coordinator explained that globally, wheat plays a crucial role in ensuring food security, income generation and wealth creation, stressing that the escalating demand for the plant in West and Central Africa had led to a significant gap between supply and demand.
“In Nigeria alone, the demand for wheat stands at 5.78 million metric tonnes, while the yearly production hovers around 160,000 metric tonnes, resulting in a staggering deficit of 92.2 per cent. The economic repercussions of this deficit are significant, with Nigeria spending well over $3 billion on wheat imports in 2022,” he said.
Source: The Guardian