The Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in collaboration with Fadama III Programme has organized a capacity building workshop on strategies for management and containment of Tuta Absoluta in Tomato production in Nigeria for field officers in the 19 northern states including the Federal Capital Territory .
The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Dr. Shehu Ahmed, who declared the workshop open in Abuja said the initiative was borne out of the need for Government to continue the awareness and upgrade of the technical know-how of relevant desk officers and extension staff as well as subject matter specialists of Agricultural Development Projects (ADPs) on the systematic and well-coordinated approach required in the management of Tuta Absoluta and its spread.
The Permanent Secretary who was represented by the Deputy Director, Horticulture in the Federal Department oF Agriculture in the Ministry, Mr. Kanu Michael said capacity building was a key component activity towards achieving the goal of food security and import substitution of the agriculture policy document the ‘Green Alternative’ 2016-2020.
Ahmed said the development of capacity would enable the extension staffs guide the farmers on how best to manage and overcome this invasive pest in tomato production.
He said workshops and training were capacity component which were key elements in the strategies among others aimed at ensuring increased in agricultural productivity and as a tool for developing the fruit and vegetable industry in Nigeria.
He added that the workshop was intended to impart knowledge and develop skills of state level technical staff on various strategies and management practices for control and containment of the invasive pest of tomato with emphasis on use of environmentally friendly technology.
He noted that tomato industry in Nigeria was characterized with a number of challenges ranging from poor quality and recycle seeds, pest and disease infestation, poor quality produce and high postharvest losses, lack of storage and preservation capacity, cottage infrastructure among others and disclosed that the Federal Government had established projects such as the workshop which would be replicated in other states of the federation, FAO Technical Cooperation Project and World Vegetable Centre collaboration project with African Development Bank to address the challenges.
He further noted that the rapid increase in national population and awareness of the health benefits of high quality fresh fruits and vegetables including tomato had led to an increase in their demand thereby making Nigeria a big market for tomato and other locally produced vegetables and tasked all stakeholders in the supply chain of Tomato to ensure public consumes safe, wholesome and nutritious fresh produce which are vital and basic necessity of life.
While encouraging the field officers to render technical support to farmers in achieving self -sufficiency in tomato production, the Permanent Secretary noted that it has been projected that Nigeria would attain self- sufficiency when its output averages 6 million metric tons annually.