….declares 6th African Regional Conference on Irrigation open
…FG develops 153,090.10 Ha of irrigable lands – Minister
…. climate change direct threat to Africa’s food security, health – Gov Zulum
By Gabriel Ewepu
ABUJA – PRESIDENT Bola Tinubu, Monday, urged other African Presidents to adopt innovative strategies to transform irrigation for greater food production amidst climate change challenges affecting farmers’ productivity.
Tinubu stated this while declaring open the 6th African Regional Conference on Irrigation and Drainage, ARCID, 2025 in Abuja, with the theme ‘Tackling Irrigation Development and Water Management Crisis in Africa’.
The President, who was represented by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, Senator George Akume, noted that irrigation and water management is critical in achieving food security, promoting sustainable agriculture.
He said: “The theme of this year’s conference, Tackling Irrigation Development and Water Management Crisis in Africa, further shows that irrigation and water management is critical in achieving food security, promoting sustainable agriculture, and ensuring economic resilience across the continent. Despite its importance, Africa still faces significant challenges in addressing its irrigation potentials due to inadequate infrastructure, financial constraints, climate change, and governance issues.
“I can confidently say that this conference is a call to action, urging especially African countries towards enhancing our potential in agriculture, exploring innovative strategies to transform Africa’s irrigation and drainage landscape. Nigeria as the host country possesses vast and untapped irrigation potentials. With over 3.1 million hectares of irrigable land, major river basins in the country, across the Niger and Benue, with a variety of wetlands and inland floodplain systems, we have the capacity to significantly boost agricultural production and enhance food security.
“Having identified this unique potential and the current food supply deficits, I declare to the Renewed Hope Agenda of this administration a national emergency on food security. This has further permitted us to embark on various policies and programs for development of irrigation infrastructure, promoting participatory irrigation management, ensuring sustainable water resource utilization.”
The Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Engr Joseph Utsev, in his address said the Tinubu-led administration has done a lot to boost food production with massively supporting irrigation and all-year farming through the River Basin Development Authorities.
According to him, Nigeria is about to commence the implementation of its successor project refer to as the Sustainable Power and Irrigation for Nigeria (SPIN), in collaboration with the World Bank. The SPIN project will soon commence with activities that will secure and maximize the socio-economic value of stored water.
He said: “The Ministry, through its agencies, the River Basins Development Authorities (RBDAs), has developed over 153,090.10 Ha of irrigable lands, while efforts are being made towards strengthening the RBDAs to deliver more on the set targets in collaboration with other stakeholders to ensure adequate development of irrigable farmlands for full production all year round.
“To ensure sustainable funding of the RBDAs, partial commercialization programme is being implemented to attract private sector funds and participation to make the authorities more commercially viable and self-reliant.
“It is equally important to note that, with the recent unveiling of the 2025 Flood Outlook and Risk Management Strategies, the impact of floods on irrigated agricultural farmlands will be effectively managed.”
Meanwhile, the Governor of Borno State, Prof Babagana Zulum, expressed deep concern over the dimension of climate change, describing it as direct threat to Africa’s food security and public health, hence the need to work hard to reverse the trend so food crisis would be contained.
“But the rain no longer comes as it once did. What was once predictable has become uncertain. According to the World Bank’s 2023 Climate Smart Agriculture Report, rainfall patterns across the Sahel have shifted by 20-30 per cent over the last decade.
“Seasons are shrinking, droughts are intensifying, and floods are becoming more devastating. Our farmers are often left unsure of when to plant or harvest, and the consequences are dire.
“The Food and Agricultural Organization warns that if this pattern continues unchecked, we will see a 50% reduction in crop yields across the continent by the year 2030. That is not just a statistic, it is a direct threat to food security, to public health, and to the future of millions of families. Despite contributing less than four per cent of global greenhouse emissions, Africa continues to suffer some of the worst effects of climate change.
“Africa possesses the creativity, the talent, and the ancestral wisdom to overcome. We need to rethink how we grow our food. We need to transit from being rain-fed dependent to being water-resilient.
“This means embarrassing climate, smart agriculture, and investing in irrigation systems that are both efficient and inclusive. Yet innovation must not be seen as the privilege of a few. Our approach must be rooted in inclusivity, especially for smallholder farmers who produce the majority of Africa’s food.
“We must build systems that honour the traditions of our people and the promise of science. We must support research institutions, secure local innovations, and ensure that our women and youth, who are the backbone of rural agriculture, are empowered with tools, knowledge, and access to markets.”
Speaking on behalf of former permanent secretaries of the Federal Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation, Amb Godknows Igali, acknowledged the fact that the increase of Nigeria’s population demands deliberate innovations and commitment to boost the irrigation system in order to grow more food and sustain the momentum of irrigation activity to feed Nigerians.
Igali also added that the Federal Government should prioritize river basins because they are the main institutions to irrigate farms for food production, and also appoint top professionals to man the river basins for greater performance.
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