AfDB, FG, want to fund wheat, rice under climate change adaptation

Nigeria has been selected as one of the beneficiaries of Programme for Integrated Development and Adaptation to Climate Change in the Niger Basin (PIDACC). 

Our finding revealed  other beneficiaries are Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Mali and Chad.

                        

The programme is going to be funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB) and Federal Government of Nigeria in the production of wheat and rice.

 According to our source '’We selected four compact, which are wheat compact, rice compact, maize compact, cassava compact and animal husbandry. But base on the available fund, the wheat and rice are what we put as our priority for consideration based on their importance’’ 

 The programme is expected to cost USD 205.188 million over a six-year period (2019- 2024) in the 9 countries, and will directly benefit 4 million people with women taking 51%. The direct beneficiaries also include smallholder farmers and vulnerable groups.

Our source said that the overall objective of the project to improve the resilience of the people and ecosystems of the Niger River Basin through sustainable natural resource management that is to achieve-  (i) Building the resilience of ecosystems and natural resources; (ii) Building the people's resilience; and (iii) Ensuring programme coordination and management. 

The main expected outcomes are: (a) the recovery of 140 000 ha of degraded land; (b) the construction of 209 water infrastructure systems for agro-pastoral and fish farming activities; (c) the implementation of 450 sub-projects for agricultural chain development purposes and 184 youth SMEs; (d) climate change (CC) adaptation capacity building for 1 000.000 households; and (e) the operationalization of a sustainable financing mechanism for sustainable natural resource management activities.