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Agro-climate resilience in semi-arid landscapes (Acresal), a project financed by the World Bank, has restored 160,000 hectares of degraded country to improve nutritional security in the country.
Mr. Cyril Bikom, agricultural expert of the National Project Coordinator of Acresal, Abdulhamid Umar, announced this in an interview in Abuja on Tuesday, February 11, 2025.
Acresal was developed to tackle the urgent challenges of land deterioration and climate change in 19 states in Northern Nigeria and the FCT.
The project consists of four key components and is expected to be completed for six years and completed in 2028.
Bikom explained that Acresal aims to restore a million hectares of degraded land, including abandoned country and areas that are affected by erosion, desert formation, deforestation and non -sustainable agricultural practices.
“The four components of the project are: dryland management that is aimed at desertification or desert attack and focuses on various aspects of land deterioration.
“Community climate resistance, institutional strengthening and project management as well as a contingent emergency reaction, which is a financing mechanism that is available to the borrowers.
“The project also carries out the capacity structure by training farmers in the best agricultural practices, which we call intelligent agriculture.
“The funds supported by the World Bank are assigned for actual project interventions, while the Federal Government provides counterpart financing.
“This project is mainly implemented at the state and community level,” he said.
Bikom added that a key component is to support the food production of the Community Revolving Fund (CRF), which ensures that the funds paid to farmers are monitored to facilitate effective restoration of the loan.
He praised the FG for its contributions to food production through land restorations and explained that the project delivers solar -powered boreholes for irrigation and agricultural inputs.
He also noted that the Intercropping project contains the filling of soil nutrients to support the FG's efforts.
“We also work with the United Nations food and agricultural organization to secure 350,000 hectares of degraded land.
“The project is directed by three ministries: the Federal Ministry of the Environment, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Nutrition Security and the Federal Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitary facilities.”
Bikom found that other ministries also play a crucial role in implementing the project, a multidecectoral and multi-institutional initiative.
“We aim at 20 strategic catchment areas, one for every state and 200 microphasses, which means 10 per state.
“The overall intervention supports agricultural production and sustainable land management practices in the participating countries in the ACRESAL project,” said Bikom.
By Abigael Joshua