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By Godswill Michael
The Federal Government has intensified efforts to combat crop diseases and strengthen food security through enhanced collaboration with stakeholders in plant health management and disease surveillance.
This was disclosed by the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Aliyu Abdullahi, during a familiarisation visit by a delegation from the Central and West African Virus Epidemiology Project (WAVE), led by its Deputy Executive Director, Prof. Angela Eni, in Abuja on Monday.
Speaking during the meeting, Abdullahi described the engagement as “vital and strategic,” stressing the urgent need to address emerging and existing plant diseases threatening agricultural productivity and food systems across the country.
According to him, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security is committed to strengthening collaboration with WAVE and other relevant stakeholders to improve plant health surveillance, mitigate crop diseases, and enhance food and nutrition security.
“The relevant documents and frameworks should undergo national validation to ensure inclusiveness, ownership, and alignment with Nigeria’s agricultural priorities,” the minister said.
He advised the Department of Plant Health and Pest Control and WAVE to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at deepening collaboration and strengthening institutional processes.
Abdullahi also emphasised the importance of involving researchers, scientists, and economists in developing evidence-based policies and sustainable strategies capable of addressing emerging agricultural and food security challenges.
The minister noted that the current administration had repositioned the ministry with a renewed mandate to support national food security and improve agricultural productivity.
In her remarks, Eni, highlighted the organisation’s role in strengthening early warning systems and preparedness for the management of transboundary plant pathogens.
She explained that the proposed platform would leverage the existing nationwide cassava viral disease epidemiological dataset developed under the WAVE initiative to support plant health surveillance and food security efforts in Nigeria.
The Director of the Department of Plant Health and Pest Control, Mrs. Grace Iwendi, said the engagement was focused on strengthening collaboration towards establishing a national plant disease monitoring and rapid response database for Nigeria.
She commended the ministry’s leadership for supporting the department through policies and partnerships aimed at improving plant health management, disease surveillance, and agricultural productivity across the country.