NiMet boss wants climate information taken to farmers

The Director General/ Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMeT) Prof. Mansur Bako Matazu has challenged climate change managers not to keep necessary information meant for farmers at the grassroots on their office shelves, stressed by so doing will short change foods productivity in West Africa sub region.

Speaking to the gathering of participants at a workshop held to strengthen the capacity of National Meteorological and Hydrological Service (NMHS) through co-production of agro-climate forecasts that will enhance productivity, sustainable agricultural development and risk management, the DG represented by Director of weather forecasting services, Mailadi Yusuf pointed that no viable climate forecast should be kept away from the rural farmers and other beneficiaries at the grassroots, adding that doing so would amount to waste of financial resources.

The NiMet boss called on stakeholders including those from the neighbouring countries of Chad and Mauritania to take forecast of major characteristics of rainy season in the Sudan/Sahel countries down to the grassroots where it is needed most for agricultural activities, arguing that “it will be a huge waste of resources (financial and human) to dump it on our shelves and not to downscale to the farmers and others that need the information’’

 In his opening remarks, the Head, Department of Research and Information, at the Centre for Agricultural and Hydrological Meteorology (AGRHYMET), Niamey, Niger Republic, Dr. Abdou Ali, disclosed that many actors are waiting for the outcome of this Forum to plan their activities.

Ali while giving the assurance of his agency to the commitment of the summit said that the workshop is important because it is “where we are going to do the co-production and expect commitment of all the participants”