Nigeria contributes about 51 per cent of the total food supply in West African but the country’s post-harvest losses have increased to an estimated N3.5tn annually, ActionAid Nigeria, an international non-governmental organisation, announced on Wednesday.
ActionAid’s Country Director, Ene Obi, announced this in Abuja at the 3rd ECOWAS Agriculture Budget Summit with the theme “Public Financing of Agriculture in ECOWAS Member States 2021.”
“The effect of this huge N3.5tn annual post-harvest losses will affect the subregion and each country in West African,” Obi stated.
She said lawmakers in ECOWAS member nations must engage in their different countries on how to attract investments to agriculture and address the challenges faced by smallholder farmers.
Obi stated that lawmakers should develop measures that would attract investments and come up with strategies in the areas of essential services such as access to credit, women in agriculture and post-harvest losses reduction.
She urged leaders in ECOWAS countries to support farmers in the aspect of storage facilities, research and development, monitoring and evaluation as well as coordination.
The ActionAid boss stated that annually, the European Union subsidised food to West Africa, and that in 2019, food subsidy was in the tune of €235m for dairy products.
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