Africanfarmer Mogaji, an agricultural expert, has urged the federal government to deploy all mechanisms and expertise to achieve its 12 points plan for food security.

Mr Mogaji appealed in an interview on Sunday in Lagos while reacting to the declaration of a state of emergency on food security by President Bola Tinubu.

He stressed that only proper planning and implementation of policies would bring about the desired change required for the nation to be food secured.

The expert said the declaration of a state of emergency on food security by the federal government was long overdue.

Mr Mogaji, a former chairman of Agriculture and Agro-Allied Group, Lagos Chambers of Commerce and Industry, noted that the development indicates the government’s seriousness.

He said the challenges of impending flooding, food harvesting, food wastage and transportation, insecurity on farmland, substandard fertilisers, low-quality agrochemicals, poor irrigation system, poor power supply, and outdated and old silos must be addressed to achieve the 12 points listed in the declaration.

“The declaration is easier said than done. Government need proper and well-thought-out planning to achieve its agenda.

“The cultivation of 500,000 hectares of land for farming is doable because the lands are available, but they cannot be achieved immediately because most of the existing land is under cultivation and is in the North.

“The distribution of grains and sorghum to farmers. Where are the grains to be distributed? Even the rice pyramids in Abuja, the government sold it off immediately,” he said.

Besides, Mr Mogaji pointed out that herders, insecurity, and all the bottlenecks have affected grain production in the last three years.

He also called for ultramodern silos across the country to boost storage facilities.

The expert urged the government to find an immediate solution to the flooding and erosion in many parts of the country which would adversely affect the proposed cultivation of 500,000 hectares of farmland.

“The government had not paid attention to the expected flooding in about 14 states, and if the flood starts now, all the farmland, including 500,000 hectares they are proposing, will be destroyed,” Mr Mogaji said.

On releasing fertiliser to farmers, he said most of the fertilisers in the country are substandard, adding that it will not have much impact until the sector is well regulated.

(NAN)