The Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA) and the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) are set to collaborate on initiatives aimed at enhancing food security and improving water disaster management across Nigeria. This development emerged following a strategic meeting at the NIHSA headquarters, where officials from both organizations deliberated on joint efforts to address these critical issues.
The WFP delegation, led by Dr. George Agwu and accompanied by Adeyinka Timothy and Haruna Usman, engaged NIHSA’s Director General, Umar Ibrahim Mohammed, in a dialogue that showcased the potential of collaboration. The discussion was anchored by a presentation on Cropland Change Analysis, delivered by David Tuna, NIHSA’s Head of Geographical Information Systems and Remote Sensing.
Umar Ibrahim Mohammed expressed optimism about the partnership, lauding the resilience of Nigerian farmers amid challenges like banditry and insurgency. He highlighted the importance of using such collaborations to refine NIHSA’s Annual Flood Outlook and pioneer a Food Security Program to assist farmers in understanding water behavior and its impact on agriculture.
“We seek collaboration and support to advance our work, especially in empowering farmers with actionable data to improve food security and mitigate water disasters,” Mohammed stated.
Dr. Agwu of WFP acknowledged the alignment of objectives between the two organizations, emphasizing the role of remote sensing technologies and capacity building in achieving shared goals. Adeyinka Timothy outlined WFP’s strategic objectives, ranging from food access and ending malnutrition to logistics and sustainable food systems. He proposed the development of joint initiatives to address food security challenges effectively.
Haruna Usman further emphasized the importance of engaging NIHSA’s technical team to translate the partnership into actionable steps.
This collaboration between NIHSA and WFP is anticipated to significantly bolster food security and water disaster management efforts, providing farmers and communities with tools to foster resilience and sustainability.
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