West African wheat experts meet in Abuja over production challenges

Wheat breeders and other stakeholders from West and Central Africa have converged in Abuja, the Nigerian capital, for the 2nd West and Central Africa Wheat Development Network (WECAWheat) Regional Summit 2024.

Wheat experts from Chad, Cameroon, Benin Republic, Niger Republic, Sudan and other countries have arrived Abuja for the summit, which begins today.

Speaking at a press conference yesterday in Abuja, the Regional Coordinator of the WECAWheat, Professor Benjamin Ubi, said this 2nd edition of the conference will among other things, seek policy reforms that will promote sustainable wheat production across the region.

He said the outcome of the summit will offer a workable blueprint that would harness a regional approach to wheat self-sufficiency across the entire sub-region.

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He said Nigeria imports about six million metric tons of wheat annually costing the country over $3 billion, which could be used for wheat research and production locally thereby making the country self-sufficient in wheat.

Also speaking at the press conference in preparation for today’s event, the  Executive Director of Lake Chad Research Institute, Maiduguri, Borno State, Professor Baba Gana Jugudum Kabir, said something needs to be done urgently to bring wheat productivity up in line with the growing demand in the country and across the region.

He said the current production level can meet only about five per cent of the country’s domestic needs, adding that there was a need for improvement both in productivity, area of cultivation, and a reduction in the length of time for the development of new varieties.

Already renowned seed breeders from many universities across West and Central Africa, wheat farmers, processors, representatives of the Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT), the African Development Bank and research institutes from the region are in Abuja for the two-day summit.