The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the purposes of improving agricultural productivity in food and by implication, ensure food security in the country.
The terms of the agreement indicated that farmers would receive weather forecasts through the meteorological agency to guide their farming activities and assist in their efforts to increase yields in food crops.
Speaking on the pact between his agency and the apex bank on Monday when a delegation of the bank visited his office in Abuja, NiMet’s Director-General, Prof. Mansur Matazu, said the collaboration would enable the farmers to get precise weather forecasts for improved output with the attendant positive implications for better living standards of Nigerians.
According to him, the MoU has provided for technical collaboration between the agency and the CBN with the development of a work plan that will provide a platform for the apex bank’s intervention.
He clarified: “Basically in the next two month, we are going to see this project being run-on between the CBN and NiMet by supporting target areas.
“Making farming activities to be smart would result in enhanced yields and an improvement in the livelihood of farmers. This project will support irrigation among other things”, Matazu added.
Speaking at the meeting, the CBN’s Head of Retail Agriculture Credit Division, Chika Nwaja, said that the apex bank was committed to boosting Nigeria’s food security, adding that with the CBN partnering farmers they will no longer face adverse weather conditions that will undermine their productivity.
He said: “It is not about efforts and labour you put into agriculture, it is about what you achieve at the end of the season.
“Meeting with NiMet and discussing with NiMet has given us hope that Nigeria has the capability in terms of precise prediction of weather forecast across the different geographical zones in the country.
“NiMet has shown us capacity and some level of capability and we will be willing to partner with it to move this project forward”, Nwaja added.
