Prof. Okechukwu Ukwuoma, Director-General of the National Centre for Technology Management (NACETEM), has stressed the importance of incorporating and adapting technology into agricultural operations in order to increase production and reduce post-harvest losses.
Although Nigeria provided around 51% of West Africa’s overall food supply, post-harvest losses have climbed to an estimated N3.5 trillion per year, according to Ukwuoma.
He spoke at a stakeholders workshop in Nasarawa State on the role of Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI) in agricultural production and food security in Nigeria.
This is bad for the country, he said, as he called for an immediate halt to the trend so that agriculture can become a viable tool for Nigeria’s long-term growth.
Ubi Okoi, Director, Technical Services, Agricultural Development Programme (ADP), Calabar, remarked that with the present changes in global agricultural technical improvement, the workshop has become very timely for enhanced service delivery in the years to come.
