Over the period spanning 11-25 June 2019, Dr Hiroyuki Takeshima, Senior Research Fellow with the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), delivered four research seminars to an overall audience of 253 representatives from government and academic circles (198 male, 55 female) in four states of Nigeria: Cross River (11 June), Ebonyi (17 June), Delta (20 June) and Kebbi (25 June).
The research seminars, entitled “Recent Research Findings on Seed Varieties, Irrigation, and Agricultural Mechanization in Nigeria” presented policy-relevant findings from studies carried out on the Feed the Future Nigeria Agricultural Policy Project involving researchers from IFPRI, the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria and the University of Ibadan between 2016 and 2018.
Dr Takeshima presented the following key recommendations for improving seed varieties, irrigation and agricultural mechanization in Nigeria:
- Increase public support for the agricultural sector and agricultural R&D (including plant breeding) as it is one of the most cost-effective ways to raise the agricultural productivity.
- Recognize the environmental impacts of large irrigation dams including neighboring hydrological basins in the decision-making process
- Provide information/knowledge and support to foster adoption of agricultural mechanization.
The research seminars are part of activities aimed at disseminating evidence relevant to policymaking in the Agricultural sector in Nigeria. The Feed the Future Nigeria Agricultural Policy Project is funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID-Nigeria) and jointly implemented by Michigan State University and IFPRI’s Nigeria Strategy Support Program.
