Agriculture stakeholders rally support to boost cassava production in Nigeria
Cassava
Nigeria
Published Nov 10, 2021
Tridge summary
Stakeholders from the public and private sector have brainstormed on the way forward to boost cassava production in Nigeria and transform the root crop into a cash cow for the nation. According to the stakeholders, the national cassava seed development summit would listen to case studies of successful seed entrepreneurs, identify and engage on the policy reforms required to galvanise the cassava seed sector to raise productivity and drive industrial growth projections.
Original content
They said that the summit would also promote impactful and economically sustainable seed models and build the capacity of stakeholders for effective seed system coordination and competitiveness. The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture ((IITA) in a statement stated that Nigeria is the largest producer of cassava, yield per hectare, but has stagnated at below 10 tons per hectare, making growers in the country uncompetitive, especially in the export market. But the IITA and the National Root Crops Research Institute (NRCRI), Umudike, have developed varieties with yield potential of more than 30 tonnes per hectare. "The task is to get the varieties to farmers in an economically sustainable manner and tackle the challenge of low yield, "the Director for Development and Delivery, Dr. Alfred Dixon, said. Dixon noted that in the last two years, the Building an Economically Sustainable Integrated Cassava Seed System, phase 2 (BASICS-II) has developed a seed system model for ...
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