George George Idowu
The Director General and CEO of the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), Professor Charles Anosike, has emailed for introduction of insurance coverage for farmers in the country towards boosting food production.
Prof. Anosike made the call on Wednesday during a courtesy visit to his office by a United States Agency for International Development (USAID) delegation.
The NiMet boss noted that agricultural insurance, combined with early weather warnings, is essential not only for enhancing farmers’ productivity but also for saving lives, especially in light of recent destructive floods in some parts of the country.
He urged USAID to extend invitations to the financial sector for their upcoming Agricultural Insurance and Weather Advisory Services Roundtable, stressing the need to integrate climate risk into financial institutions’ operations This, he said, would help bring agricultural insurance into greater focus for farmers.
He further said that the idea of launching a pilot insurance scheme for farmers before expanding it to the public, pledging NiMet’s support and participation.
Prof. Anosike also shared NiMet’s plans to roll out training programs on weather, water, and climate science to build capacity among stakeholders.
Similarly, Ben Odoemena, USAID’s Chief of Party, reaffirmed the importance of NiMet’s role, highlighting the need for collaboration to improve weather information and insurance penetration in rural areas.
He called for greater awareness among smallholder farmers about weather patterns, stressing its significance for the future of Nigerian agriculture.