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How weather forecast can reduce losses in agricultural practices

By Fatima Muraina

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Getting the required forecast and weather guide in addition to few others are necessary requirements for a sustainable food production. Many farmers have ran into debts because they planted against the advice derived from the weather forecast.

The flood disaster of 2019 was one that grounded many farmers in Nigeria. When the flood came, farmers had planted their crops. Many of them planted rice. Alas! The rain came in torrents and nothing could be salvaged. The harvest was not yet ripe. That was how many farm projects got swept down the drain.

Some of these farmers are still scrambling to pay back loans that had gone to waste when their food crops became submerged in flood water.

Agricultural forecast is about predicting the future occurrence, giving an insight of what may or is expected to happen so that necessary measures can be taken to address what has been predicted.

In this regard, Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET) is a Federal Government agency charged with the responsibility of advising the Federal Government on all aspects of meteorology; project, prepare and interpret government policy in the field of meteorology; and to issue weather (and climate) forecasts for the safe operations of aircrafts, ocean going vessels and oil .

The agency recently unveiled the forecast for 2023 in which it predicted early rain fall and thunder storm in some parts of the country.

Farmers were advised not to rush to plant as the early rainfall might cease at a time before it will recommence with heavy rainfall and then farming activities can commence fully.

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The Project Manager of the Climatology Department of the Ondo State Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Mr Adeshina Akeju, who spoke on weather forecast and its importance to agriculture disclosed that the only agency given the permission to give a weather forecast is the NIMET which is a federal agency while the state Department of Climatology  is directed to give necessary guide on what has been predicted through their Meteorological station points across the state(s).

Akeju expressed that the state does not have any forecast unit but the Department of Agroclimatology whose responsibility is to work on what has been predicted by taking the records of the weather and educating farmers and determining periods which farming operations should be best done..

” Majorly, we take weather records but do not forecast. We have Meteorological stations in all the 18 local government areas of the state with the field overseers who take the record and send to the headquarters,”, he said.

He observed that the lack of finance for the Climatology Department not to talk of establishing a forecasting unit  due to paucity of funds had been inimical to agricultural practice in Nigeria while regretting that NIMET is the only authorised agency to forecast.

He stated that there are many benefits of forecasting such as reducing risks in agricultural practices and making better financial decisions that increase profit margins, cash flow, improve resource allocation, and create more opportunities for growth.

 Akeju, stressed the importance of forecast to farmers for proper planning giving an example of a NIMET prediction of flooding in about 32 states, saying the state concerned would have begun to put necessary measures in place to address the situation.

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 “State Climatology Department has began to sensitize farmers against planting following the early rainfall being experienced as predicted by NIMET which it said could cease.

Farmers are most times deprived of the weather guide expected from the Climatology Department due to lack of funds.

” We put it in the budget at all times but it depends on the political will of the government. The Agagu regime came up with weekly weather report but such directive has not been given after then,”

The Ondo state Agricultural Commodities Association, OSACA, tried to arrange for weekly report having realised its importance but could not go far.

The inability to educate farmers through weather report is affecting food production  and for a sustainable food production farmers should be more conservative in what they are doing to be able to work with records and with their experience particularly with the issue of early rainfall.

The Agricultural Development Agency, ADP, too is an extension of the Ministry of Agriculture that can educate and sensitize farmers more on agricultural practice.

There is also need for government to realise the importance of extending the weather guide report to farmers which will be better and would help enhance food production in the state  to avoid rushing to farm as a result of early rain which may end up  disappointing the farmers.

 The Head of Department, Meteorology and Climatic Science, School of Sciences, Federal University of Technology, Akure, (FUTA),  Prof. Ahmed Balogun,  while reacting on the weather situation raised the need to give necessary and adequate weather guide to farmers.

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” It is the responsibility of the state agencies such as the ADP and the Climatology Department. An individual expert cannot be doing that except they are ready to pay for the service to encourage us to do that,” he stated.

He said that the farmers should be properly guided so that they will not be rushing to farm except for those that are in water logged areas or Fadama or those who are ready to supplement rain by irrigation when the rain cease.

He advised farmers to wait till April when the real rain will fall for farming before they start planting crops.

He advised farmers to help themselves out on issue of proper weather guide for their farming operation.

” If we have 1,000 farmers and they pay N1,000 each for assessment of weather guide for better farming operation which will yield bumper harvest, it will go a long way in funding the weather guide to encourage Meteorologists or climatologists for weather guide.”

He, however, charged farmers to form cooperatives to pay for the weather guide when prediction or weather forecast is released for farming year activities.

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How weather forecast can reduce losses in agricultural practices

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