By Bisola Adeyemo
An NGO, ‘Bridge That Gap’ has called on farmers in Kaduna State, to adopt Smart Agriculture to enable them to introduce innovative practices and systems that mitigate effect of climate change on good production, in line with Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET) rainfall forecast in Kaduna state.
The NGO’s Executive Director Ms. Gloria Bulus made the call on Wednesday in an interview with journalists in Kaduna.
Bulus described climate-smart agriculture as an integrated approach to managing landscapes, cropland, livestock, forests, and fisheries that address the interlinked challenges of food, security and climate change.
The NGO boss said based on NIMET prediction, Kaduna state was likely to experience an earlier than the normal onset of rainfall in 2022 compared to previous years.
She said “Heavy rainfall may lead to flooding that can wipe out agricultural crops over wide areas, and excess water can also lead to other impacts including soil waterlog and reduced plant growth.”
“In view of the expected early rain and flood, farmers should align to the changes in annual rainfall by imbibing the culture of climate-smart agriculture,” she advised.
“On agricultural production, climate change is reducing crop yields, the nutritional quality of major crops, and lowering livestock productivity.”
“Food crop production under various climate change scenarios requires the use of improved technologies to increase productivity under adverse conditions of increased temperature, intense storm, flood, and drought,” she said.