The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), in collaboration with the Adamawa Government, has validated a climate-resilient livelihoods strategy to support vulnerable communities from 2026 to 2030.

The FAO Natural Resources and Energy Specialist, Yakaka Maina, stated this at a state-level validation workshop on Tuesday in Yola.

Ms Maina said the initiative aimed to align agricultural investments with the state’s durable solutions plan for internally displaced persons (IDPs), returnees and vulnerable host communities.

She said the exercise, conducted with the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), focused on developing a climate-resilient livelihoods strategy and a climate-smart agriculture investment framework.

According to her, the framework will identify priority investments to boost agricultural production, accelerate recovery and promote sustainable livelihoods among affected communities.

She stated, “FAO developed the initial framework three years ago but needed to update it to incorporate the state’s emerging durable solutions priorities.

“Stakeholder consultations identified livelihood support packages for displaced men and women, fertiliser for men in host communities, and access to finance for women.

“Other priorities included soil fertility management, farmer field schools, aquaculture, nutrition, livestock vaccination, and feed and fodder production.”

Ms Maina said the framework would include cost-benefit analyses of proposed interventions, enabling the government and development partners to assess investment requirements and expected returns.

“This is to develop an operational document that the Adamawa Government can present to donors, indicating the costs required and benefits expected from investments.

“The completed document would support resource mobilisation by the state government and FAO, while guiding future development programmes,” she said.

Earlier, an ICRISAT representative, Abdullahi Bashir, said the organisation was supporting FAO to address gaps in the existing framework and strengthen investment planning through 2030.

He said the validation exercise would promote state ownership and allow stakeholders to contribute to the final document.

The Director of Programmes, Ministry of Reconstruction, Rehabilitation, Reintegration and Human Services, Abba Yahaya, noted that the initiative offered an important model for addressing livelihood challenges.

Mr Yahaya expressed hope that stakeholders’ recommendations would guide the selection of productive investments capable of delivering lasting benefits to affected communities.

Similarly, Director of Planning, Research and Statistics, Adamawa Ministry of Water Resources, Umar Aliyu, commended FAO and ICRISAT for supporting sustainable food production.

Mr Aliyu said the ministry had identified water supply, dam construction, water storage and irrigation as priority areas for improving agricultural productivity.

He said improved irrigation would complement rain-fed farming, strengthen food security and support Adamawa’s ambition of becoming a major food-producing state.

He added that the finalised framework would guide future investments and programmes to strengthen resilience and promote sustainable livelihoods across communities. 

(NAN)