By Bukola Adewumi
The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the (FAO)has commended Nigeria for taking the right steps to address the slow and negative trend in rural transformation and sustainable development.Mr Fred Kafeero, FAO Representative said this at the Hand-in-Hand Initiative (HIH) Technical Task Team Progress Review Meeting on Wednesday in AbujaAccording to him, there is no doubt Nigeria made the right steps to address the slow and negative trend in rural transformation and sustainable development.
He said that the overall objective of the Initiative was to contribute to the elimination of extreme poverty, hunger and all forms of malnutrition and the reduction of inequality in Nigeria.
This, he said, would come through accelerated agricultural and food systems transformation and promoting sustainable rural development through spatially differentiated investments.This according to him is by promoting progress to achieve Sustainable Development Goals one and two.”These goals are the foundational objectives of the 2030 agenda. The HIH contributes to the attainment of all the other SDGs.“The initiative prioritises countries where national capacities and international support are limited, including Small Island Developing States and Least Developed States.”He said that enhancing country ownership and leadership was a foundational objective of the Initiative, adding that globally, the Initiative works through a networked “One FAO” approachThis, he said, arose from creating centres of excellence within FAO, such as the HIH Geospatial Platform, the Data Lab and the Investment Centre at headquarters (HQ).“This is to mobilise means of implementation that includes access to markets, technology, innovation, capacity development, institutional and policy reform, best humanitarian and resilience approach as well as finance and investment.“This Initiative in Nigeria adopted a twin track approach as humanitarian and resilience aiming to create, sustain, improve livelihoods to withstand shocks in focus areas within the country and value chain development,” he said.
Also speaking, Dr Mu’azu Abdulkadir, Senior National Consultant FAO said the HIH seeks to accelerate agricultural transformation and sustainable rural development with the objective of radicating Poverty, eliminating Hunger and All forms of Mainutation and reducing inequalities.Abdulkadir said the aim of the initiative is to build partnership callaborations and synergies amongst government, private sector development.According to him, Nigeria is one of about five countries being supported by FAO implemented by the HIH which is shaped along development and Humanitarian actions.In his contribution, Mr Abubakar Suleiman, Assistant Director FAO said the target is to achieve sustainable enabling infrastructure, environment and market accessibility for the production and commercialisation of focus agricultural produce.He said this would accelerate agricultural and rural transformation stakeholder consultation to identify key constraints that could impede the realisation of identified potentials.(NAN)
