Stakeholders Partner IITA On Zero Hunger Initiative

The inaugural meeting
of the Zero Hunger Strategic Review, has taken place in Ibadan, headquarters of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA).
A release made available to The Tide in Port Harcourt recently, said the meeting was organised by the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL and IITA).
According to the release, the meeting was aimed at drawing a road map to end hunger in Nigeria by 2030.
The parley received support from the World Food Programme ( WFP) and was organised in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to seek an end to hunger by 2030.
Former president Obasanjo, convener of the meeting, said the task of attaining the SDGs could not be left for the government alone or for civil society or the private sector.
“It is going to take the collective effort of each and every citizen of this nation and our partners.
“It will require our collective change and mindset to at first identify the opportunities that abound”, he said.
The former president said that Nigeria’s continued importation of food was unacceptable and requested that efforts be made to address it.
The WFP representatives, Stanlake Samkange, explained that the SDGs would be driven by the countries themselves and the WFP/UN’s role was to support countries in achieving these goals.
“WFP’s role is to be a catalyst in a country-owned process”, he said.
IITA Director General, Nteranya Sanginga, in his remark said that IITA would provide the necessary support for Nigeria to achieve its target within the framework of Zero Hunger Imitative.