It is not news that Nigeria for a long time has been a major importer of the United States hard red and white winter wheat with total imports amounting to about $7 billion in 10 years (between 1999 to 2010). JOHN OBA, however, reports that Nigeria’s quest for self-sufficiency may soon be a reality.
In spite of the country’s enormous potentials and opportunities for wheat production, the contribution of Nigeria to global wheat production has been very low, making many to believe that Nigeria’s soils are not good for wheat farming. Statistics show that the country requires over 4.3 million tons of wheat grain annually but the total capacity Nigeria has been able to produce was only 300,000 metric tons leaving a huge gap between domestic production and consumption to be filled by importation.
Report also has it that Nigeria consumed about 6.2 billion loaves of wheat bread estimated at about $6.65 billion supplied through domestic production from over 20,000 local bakeries annually.
Hence the government targeted interventions such as the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA) with wheat value chain as one of its major focus so as to replace the country’s excessive dependence on wheat importation and the commissioning of the Lake Chad Research Institute to focus on developing heat tolerant varieties of wheat that are high yielding, rain-fed wheat that are resistant to high temperature, high humidity and diseases as well as the promotion of wheat as a staple crop, expansion of the area under wheat production and the use of proper agronomic practices for high yield.
This quest for self-sufficiency in wheat production is finally becoming a reality with the institute, recently developing and releasing high yielding, heat tolerant wheat varieties with yielding potential of five to six tons per hectares.
The research Institute which has the mandate on the genetic improvement of wheat, millet and barley and to identity these high potential lines through the evaluation of large number of available wheat with the focus of releasing nine new wheat varieties in the next three years with potential yield under irrigation averaging 6 to 8 tons per hectare.
Giving the assurance of the Institute’s efforts, the Executive Director, Dr. Oluwasina Gbenga Olabanji, at the pre- season training workshop on wheat production, processing and utilisation in Kebbi state, said wheat importation has gulp the country foreign exchange to the tune of $4.3 billion annually.
He said the present drive for large scale production of wheat in the quest for self-sufficiency has reached an irreversible and sophisticated status in Nigeria, saying this must be achieve since Nigeria has the human, natural and material resources to be self-sufficiency in wheat production in near future, since import dependency is neither economically and politically tolerable nor sustainable, as it displaces domestic wheat production and promotes foreign exchange drain.
“In line with the federal government policies for promoting wheat production in Nigeria towards attaining self-sufficiency and reducing importation, Lake Chad Research Institute who has the mandate on the genetic improvement of wheat in Nigeria had taken steps to widen the area under wheat production with the objective of meeting national demand.
“Therefore apart from the existing major production states like Borno, Yobe, Bauchi, Gombe, Jagawa, Kano, Katsina, Zamfara, Sokoto and Kebbi, other marginal areas exploited by the institutes includes Kaduna, Nasarawa, Abuja, Niger, Kwara, Ondo, Ogun, Edo and Ebonyi states.
He said in collaboration with the Kaduna like other state governments had trained farmers, and acquires 5,000 hectares for wheat production during the 2016/2017 season, adding that seeds have been distributed and established using LCRI wheat planter.
Also speaking during the workshop, the governor of Kebbi state, Senator Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, saying the government through the presidential task force he is chairing would encourage the states to start early planting of wheat as recommended.
Describing wheat as international crop, Bagudu lamented the low output of the crop in Africa, saying the total production in Africa is not up to what Pakistan alone can produce, assuring that with the present administration focus, all the lacking impetus are now available to propel wheat production.
Stating the achieving of the Institute, Olabanji said: “The wheat improvement program released it first wheat variety, LCRIWHAT-1 (Seri M82) in 1998 with high yield and good baking quality, while two varieties were released in 2005; LCRIWHIT -2 (Cettia), with early maturity, heat tolerance, high yield and excellent baking quality and LCRIWHIT-3 (Linfen) with high yield and excellent baking quality. In 2008, LCRIWHIT-4 was released with medium maturity, heat tolerance, high yield and good baking quality. Two varieties were also released in 2014 both with early maturity, heat tolerance, high yield and excellent baking quality.
In addition, two rain-fed wheat varieties were released this year with medium maturity, low rain fall requirement, high yield and good baking quality,” he said.
He said with the efforts of the Institute, local wheat production will increase with over 300,000 tons in Nigeria.
