A don from the Department of Geology, College of Environmental Resources Management (COLERM), Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta FUNAAB, Prof. Adewole Gbadebo has said food crisis in Nigeria can be traced to water scarcity and insecurity. He said this while featuring on the special edition of Boiling Point programme on FUNAAB Radio 89.5FM in commemoration of World Food Day with the theme: ‘Water is life, Water is food, leave no one behind.’
He charged the government to formulate policies that would enhance food production, and advised individuals to take the issue of food production seriously by collaborating with relevant stakeholders in agriculture industry. The don who is also the Head of Department of Geology believed “that Nigeria is blessed with everything to be the food basket of the world with good climate, good arable lands for cultivation but lacks interest and encouragement to go into agricultural practices.”
Prof. Gbadebo noted with dismay the rate at which water was getting more scarce and polluted nowadays, stressing that “water is the basic ingredient for food preparation and as such would affect life negatively”. He said there was the need for water analysis no matter how clean and pure it appeared to the eyes, adding that Nigerians should make conscious effort in making water clean in order to have a healthy society. The radio guest reiterated that “water is not only source of life, it is also the foundation of food security” even as he called on Nigerians to join hands with the Department of Geology in FUNAAB to keep water safe and clean. He said further that there was the need for geological mapping of land at the state and local government level for effective management, he added.