The Federal Government has called for inter-ministerial collaboration to tackle food insecurity. In the country. Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Prof Joseph Utsav, made the call at the 30th regular meeting of the National Council on Water Resources and Sanitation, yesterday, in Abuja, charging state governors to utilise the facilities in their states to boost food production.
  
The minister also urged directors of the 12 River Basin Development Authorities (RBDAs) to rise to the challenge of ensuring that crops are irrigated all-year-round to stem the seasonal glut and food scarcity.
  
The meeting’s theme, ‘People, Planet and Prosperity: Promoting Water Governance for National Food Security’ is aimed at curbing the rising cost of food and its negative impact on populace.”
  
Represented by the permanent secretary at the ministry, Aliyu Shehu, the minister said the three flagship programmes of government namely, Water for Expanded Irrigation Agriculture (WEIRPRO), Partnership for Expended Irrigation Programme (PEIPRO) and River Basin Strategy for Poverty Alleviation (RB-SPA) are aimed at boosting food production in the country.
  
Utsav, therefore, urged the participants and experts at the 40th Water Council meeting to focus on water governance and its roles in the promotion of national food security.
  
He stated that implementation of the programmes, which kick-started with the launch in Jigawa State in November 2023, was aimed at boosting youth employment through agriculture.
  
According to him, some RBDAs have already leveraged the intervention to launch dry season farming within their catchment areas, adding: “The remaining RBDAs that have yet to do so, are encouraged to follow suit.
  
“The expected outcome of the various Interventions is to create five to 10 million jobs for our teeming youths within the agriculture value chain.”