Former Nigeria Ambassador to Philippines, Ambassador. Yemi Farounbi has urged the federal government to create an enabling environment such that will encourage the youths to embrace agriculture and faming activities in order to achieve total food security for the nation.
Ambassador Farounbi gave the urge at a discussant programme in Ibadan tagged Culture Meets Culture, and how how Arts and Agric can be used to address challenges facing the country in food security.
According to him, the federal government has an enormous roles to play in addressing the menace of youths not embracing agriculture as a means of achieving livelihood and food security for the nation, rather, classifying themselves as globalized youths.
The elder statesman who said the nation heroes during their youthful days used Arts and Agric to sustain the economic wondered why youths of nowadays are not toeing the same path but class themselves as globalized youths.
“Government need to prevail on the young people who class themselves as globalized youths to embrace agriculture., These youths need to be encouraged so that they can have confidence and be proud of the country again.. Many of them class themselves as globalized youths because they have lost hope in Nigeria.”
Ambassador Farounbi commended Prince Tunde Odunlade for initiating the programme adding that it is capable of reintroducing the country to the paths of agriculture and food security.
In his lecture, titled, “Arts and Agric in Historical Perspective, Professor Tayo Adesina of the Department of History, University of Ibadan, described arts and agriculture as factors that have defined our existence in Nigeria.
According to him, societies today are lacking because the people do not understand how the human existence is wired adding that Arts and Agric cut across all spheres of human endeavours
“Arts came into existence to protect agriculture hence both are connected for the survival of man and his environment.
“Nature and agriculture have provided context with which humans can survive. As a people we are forever bind together, and we need to redefine the context to enable us move forward.”
Professor Adesina urged Nigerians to go back to the root base in order to address the problems facing the country with a renewed mindset to do the needful and bring back the full economy base of Nigeria.
In his address, the convener, Prince Tunde Odunlade said the programme was designed to redirect our minds back to agriculture in order to address the multifaceted problems facing the nation’s economy.
He then thanked the participants and guests at the programme for their brilliant contributions, just as he expressed confidence that Nigeria will get it right by setting their minds right to embrace agriculture.
