Women Enterprise Alliance (WENA) has called on the Federal government to invest in locally fabricated materials to enhance the scalability and acceptability of innovative technology in agriculture.
It also urged the government to invest in green-house technologies to enhance learning on agricultural innovations.
This was made known in a communique by the Founder, WENA, Aisha Babangida, at the end of a two-day agriculture summit with the theme: “Rethinking Paradigm Shift in Agriculture and Initiatives to Enhance Food Security” in Abuja.
The communique reiterated the need for accelerated political will to drive the implementation of agricultural related policies.
According to the communique, there is a need for renewed investments in research and development, in promoting food security and agricultural sustainability.
While calling for concerted efforts from agricultural stakeholders and the ecosystem to create a viable agriculture marketplace and e-commerce platform, it noted that agricultural students in high institutions should be exposed to innovative agricultural practices – such as smart farming, hydroponics, aquaponics and aeroponics.
“There is a need to bridge the gap between development Finance Institutions and small holder farmers to improve access to finance for scalability. The adoption of innovation in agriculture should be a function of geography, scalability, and sustainability.
“Government and stakeholders should invest in locally fabricated materials to enhance the scalability and acceptability of innovative technology in agriculture.
“There is a need for universities to provide practical training to students on modern technologies and agricultural best practices. There is a need for continuous interactions through e-platforms to allow for continuous learning and experience sharing.
“Adoption of Smart agricultural practices is essential for enhanced food security. There is a need for the development of efficient water harvesting technology to ensure food security.
“There is an urgent need to develop efficient agricultural precision technology for improved crop quality and profitability. Community-based seed and seedling production strategies should be embraced to improve the seed supply system for economic growth.
“There is a need to update the agricultural curriculum to include modern precision technology to make agriculture attractive to youths. Integrated farming should be embraced for agricultural sustainability”, the communique noted.