Deputy Gov Lists Gains Of Soil Science Bill

Participants on field praticals at the West Africa Aquaculture Productivity Programme’s training on Aquaculture Business in Ibadan, recently.

The Deputy Governor of
Cross River State, Prof. Ivara Esu, has said that the Institute of Soil Science Bill before the National Assembly if passed into law would go a long way in regulating the practice of Soil Science in Nigeria.
The bill is being sponsored by the Soil Science Society of Nigeria.
Esu who spoke in an interview monitored by our correspondent on the sidelines of the recent celebration of the World Soil Day in Abuja explained that the bill would also regulate  those who are trained and are practicing Soil Science  all over the country.
The deputy governor who is a renowned soil scientist said soil science had a critical role to play in the pursuit of the nation’s food security drive. According to him, every food consumed or planted grows on soil, adding that even if the crops are planted in a green house we still have to carry soil in containers to transplant.
“Soil is the key to food production and security, soil is the key to life”, he said.
On why some governments at various levels attach less importance to soil management, Esu explained that such development stems out of ignorance.
He further said such persons did not understand the details involved in soil management and called for the engagement of qualified soil scientists to handle matters relating to the soil in the country. “We need to study our soil to enable us know how to manage them”, he said.
He said a lot of people did not understand the content and composition of the various soil types even as he expressed the need for proper identification to enable the cultivation of the desired crops on particular soils.
Prof Esu who is also a member of Soil Science Institute explained further that it was due to lack of proper soil handling that poor turnover on hectrages occur on cultivated lands across the country.
He advised government, especially  the  eighth National  Assembly to do something to pass the bill because it will pacify those who feel the government was not doing enough in that direction.

Stories by King Osila