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- Flags off food-for-all nations project
- Optimistic of achieving SDG one
From Fred Ezeh, Abuja
An ecosystem advocacy organization, Earth Environment and Climate Care Ambassadors (EECCA), has expressed confidence in the ability and capacity of Nigeria and by extension, Africa to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) one, which is zero hunger for all, hence it challenged African leaders to rise to the occasion.
The organization said that over dependence on food importation by Nigeria, Africa and some other developing Nations of the world is unacceptable, hence the leaders must bequeath a world free from hunger to the next generation.
EECCA President, Ajah James, gave the charge at an event to flag off the Food-for-All Nations project, in Abuja, with the theme “building more climate adaptation and resilient food system through sustainable agricultural revolution”.
He said the advocacy organization envisage abundant future for Nigeria and Africa if additional commitments would be made to protecting the ecosystem and harnessing the abundance of wealth in the land of Nigeria and Africa.
He explained that the objective of the event was to raise the consciousness of African leaders to the need to build Nigeria’s food system to feed Africa and rest of the world; activate food and agriculture delivery compact; mobilize political will and resources in support of the project; and reposition agriculture as nations economic mainstay.
He said: “The global climate change and food crisis is a wakeup call for Nigeria and Africa to launch into green revolution which has long been over delayed. Interestingly, several international partners have expressed deep interests to partner with us to realize the objectives of the project.
“Nigeria, Africa and other developing nations of the world can and must begin to feed itself with over 65 per cent of the uncultivated arable land left in the world be it Africa or other continents of the world. What we do with agriculture will determined the future of food in the world.
“Our desire at EECCA is that there should be a world free from hunger, poverty, malnutrition and zero emission from everyone. It is time for collaborative effort and partnership towards achieving SDGs Goal one (Zero hunger) and climate change adaptation and mitigation through sustainable agricultural revolution.
“EECCA targets to meet the challenge of providing sufficient food for over 200 million Nigerians, improves Nigeria’s agriculture and food system to experience, at least 75 per cent annual rate by 2030. The world’s population is rising and they must be fed. We have no choice as time is not on our side.”
He said that EECCA is open to partner with relevant agencies of the Federal Government, Development Partners, Multilateral and Bilateral Institutions, Farmers, Agribusinesses, Public and Private Sectors, amongst others, to ensure provision of affordable nutritious foods and protection to the ecosystem.
He also called on Federal Government MDAs, relevant agencies on food and agriculture and stakeholders to support EECCA to boost regional trade in food and agriculture, especially with the Africa continental free Trade Area, and promote food and agriculture trade with the rest of the world.
