As climate change continues to truncate crop production in Benue State, a non-governmental organisation under the aegis of Women Environmental Program (WEP)-Nigeria has commenced training over 70 vulnerable farmers on a new farming method without soil called hydroponics.
This is even as the WEP Monitoring and Evaluation Officer Damaris Uja, in a welcome address, informed that the project which is supported by Christian Aid- Nigeria, Action to Combat Climate Change Threats (ACCT), has in its vision to build a world where the lives of women and youths will be positively transformed, through the new methods of agriculture amid climate change.
In a presentation titled ‘Urban Hydroponic For Vegetable Production” a Hydroponic expert, Sunday Elebiju, explained that the Hydroponic system of farming is a system that will help farmers plant without soil and still get a better harvest, adding that this system of farming does not need soil to grow crops, what is required is water and few other materials.
According to him, “Hydroponic farming is inclusive because everybody can farm all sorts of vegetables all year round using water, irrespective of owning a piece of land or not, he or she can grow vegetables in the backyard using this method.
The Hydroponic expert who also taught farmers the new methods of growing yams in sack said a little space is needed for a yam farmer to get 1000 tubers of yams without stress.
He further enumerated the materials needed to start hydroponic farming, including PVC pipes, PVC end caps and elbows, and water reservoirs, among other things, for effective planting.
He said, “After planting, regular monitoring and maintenance should be done appropriately, and the planting should also be done where there is enough light for the plant to manufacture their food for proper yields.
The WEP M&E officer Uja further said the objectives of the project are to enhance food security and improve the livelihood of farmers in a population affected by the severe impact of climate-related shocks and stresses.
According to her, “The project also aims at promoting climate-smart Agricultural practices among smallholder farmers and other vulnerable groups in our local communities by 2026, and as well build the capacity of women groups, and civil society organisations to advocate for increased investment in climate change adaptation actions to relevant government agencies.”
In an interview, the deputy executive director of WEP- Nigeria, John Baaki, explained that the inclusive project is to ensure that all households, irrespective of whether land owners or not, are farming all year round, using water to sustain themselves and admit the hardship being experienced today.
He said, “WEP is an organisation that is championing sustainable environmental actions across the globe, and we are in Makurdi, the Benue State capital, today to train CSOs, Government agencies, persons with disabilities and farmers of Adaka and Apir communities on Hydroponic farming because due to climate change and unsustainable land use practices in Nigeria most persons especially Women in urban areas have no land to farm, so we are here to teach them an alternative way of farming that does not need soil.