Climate Change Affects 350,000 Hectares Of Land Annually– Expert

A group, Civil Organisations Research Advocacy and Funding Initiatives Development (CORAFID), said Nigeria loses over 350, 000 hectares of arable land annually to climate change.

The founder and chairman of CORAFID, Mr Nathaniel Awuapila made the assertion at a panel discussion on the theme: “Agriculture Conundrum in the Benue Valley and the Impact of Climate Change.” He said climate change has brought dwindling crop production and poor yields.

He said, “Climate change has a negative impact on the environment, especially on farming. It has also encouraged desertification and has drastically reduced productivity thereby discouraging most farmers to go into production.

“This panel discussion is to brainstorm on ways that will help government at all levels to bring out policies that will help   in mitigating the negative impact of climate change on the environment in Benue and Nigeria at large.”

Awuapila lamented a situation where the government is reluctant in setting up an office in charge of climate change issues, adding that the mass exodus of herdsmen across the continent to Nigeria in search of greener pastures is as a result of climate change.

In an interview with the convener of the panel, Barr. Joseph Gbagyo, he lamented that at the moment there is no serious policy direction in the state as regards the issue of climate change even though the state government through the State Assembly has enacted Climate Act 2021 which is yet to be domesticated.

While calling on the government at all levels to make policies that will help end climate change, Gbagyo said, the impact of climate change on agriculture in the state is enormous, saying that is why CORAFID through its research programme decided to come up with this self-funded project.

In a remark, a representative of MACBAN, Ahmed Mohammed, said the mass movement of herdsmen into the state is as the result of climate change which has brought about shortage of water. “So, we are moving around in search of water for our cattle,” he said.