(http://fmi.gov.ng/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Brazil-Flag-300x224.jpg) In line with the Federal Government efforts to transform Nigerian agriculture, the government has made known its desire to transform its Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria by adopting the Brazilian model- "Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária", acronym for the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation.
This was revealed by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina during his study visit to Brazil. The Minister was in Brazil with his front line Directors to discover and understudy the source of Brazil's Agricultural successes.
The team during the visit discovered that the major contributor to the attainment of Brazil present enviable status in agricultural success is Embrapa.
Embrapa is was regarded as the brain behind the success of Brazil's Agriculture. The main achievement of Embrapa, according to the Minister was to turn the cerrado (Savannah) green.
The Minister noted that when Embrapa started, the Cerrado (Brazil Savannah) was said to be regarded as unfit for farming by then as they seemed too acidic and too poor in nutrients but he said he was impressed by the way Embrapa turned things around. He asserted, "Today, the "Cerrado" region contributes more than 70% of the beef cattle production in the country, and thanks to irrigation and soil correcting techniques, it is also an important production centre of grains, mainly soya, beans, maize and rice".
Speaking further, he said, "Nigeria must learn how Brazil did it and one of the things we can take with us is how to transform our own Northern Savannah; Nigeria's Northern Guinea Savannah is similar to that of Brazil"; he said, there is need to build a very solid partnership with Embrapa.
The Minister stressed that Brazil's agricultural miracle did not happen through a simple technological fix. "No magic bullet accounts for it, all the interventions worked together. Improving the soil and the new tropical soybeans were both needed for farming the Cerrado; the two together also made possible the changes in farm techniques which have boosted yields further, so I see no reason the ARCN should not perform the same function in Nigeria".
Dr. Adesina noted that, Embrapa, while maintaining projects in International Cooperation in order to perfect knowledge of technical and scientific activities or to share knowledge and technology with other countries, has also generated and recommended more than nine thousand technologies for Brazilian agriculture. He said it has reduced production costs and helped Brazil to increase the offer of food while at the same time, conserving natural resources and the environment as well as diminishing external dependence on technologies, basic products and genetic materials
The Minister commended Embrapa's latest 'trick' called "Forest, Agriculture and Livestock integration", which according to him, is the process where the fields are used alternately for crops and livestock but threads of trees are also planted in between the fields, where cattle can forage. This, he said, " Is the best means devised for rescuing degraded pasture lands and having spent years increasing production and acreage, Embrapa is now turning to ways of increasing the intensity of land use and of rotating crops and livestock so as to feed more people without cutting down the forest."
The Brazilian government, according to the Minister, also established what is called Forest Allowance Programme through which it rewards populations for the maintenance of the tropical forest environment.
Dr. Adesina said that Brazil made use of every opportunity he had and developed what he has been able to acquire from other countries positively as he noted that Brazil imported some of its raw materials from other tropical countries including Africa. He said, "Brachiaria grass came from Africa while the Zebu that formed the basis of Brazil's Nellore cattle herd came from India. In both cases, Embrapa's know-how improved them dramatically.
The Minister made it clear that the partnership between the two countries would be for research programme and "to use the advantage to nurture our own ARCN to be like Brazil by getting to know how Embrapa works, how they train staff, fund research and how they invested in agriculture to unlock the power of agric in various areas".
The next step to be taken in the Agricultural Transformation Agenda in guiding the path to reclaim Nigeria's lost glory according to him is to reform the policies and institutions to modernize agriculture. "Research and Development is the basis for Brazil's great achievement, you don't research without qualifications, laboratory, and so on, and Nigeria needs to boost human capacity".
Addressing the Nigeria Team, a former President of Embrapa, Carlos Magno, said agriculture must be well done on a sustainable basis. He advised that Nigeria finds simple solution to complex problem and beef up its research Council with professionals; "The solution you find to a complex problem must be simple to the farmers which should be borne out of research, you don't research without qualifications, Brazil has 47 Research Councils which is helping to proffer solutions to our agricultural problems".
For Nigeria to achieve success in Agriculture, he said adequate attention must be given to entrepreneurship, basic infrastructure, mechanization, power, store houses, research, technical assistance, rural extension, credit facilities, and access to fertilizers among other.
Via: Federal Ministry of Information (FMI) Nigeria
It's high we all know the agricultural sector is always an important sector in any country.
We need to see to that