Nigeria’s avowed objective of turning the country’s economy around through agricultural revolution is receiving a boost from the most unlikely quarter: WOFAN Comprehensive school children.
This is as members of WOFAN Comprehensive School’s Young Farmers Club ramp up their crop production activities in their state-of-the-art School Greenhouse.
The pupils, who are in Primary Class 2 to 4 started their greenhouse gardening at the beginning of the Third Term of the 2017/2018 academic session and they are now very proud young farmers with dreams of feeding the nation through their contributions to the agricultural revolution being championed by all tiers of the Nigerian government with the theme “Catching them young”
Speaking during a visit to the greenhouse at the end the term today, the Proprietress of the school and Executive Director/Founder WOFAN, schools.wofan.org), Hajia Salamatu Garba expressed pleasant surprise at the progress made by the pupils in such a short time.
She commended the pupils for showing the kind of enthusiasm and commitment which has turned the School Greenhouse into “a truly green house”, noting that their passion is a good sign that Nigeria could still be on course to meeting its nutrition and food security targets if the right strategies are employed. She said, “When we constructed the Greenhouse at the beginning of the term, we just wanted to show that agriculture can be fun in addition to being a professional however the enthusiasm shown by the children has confirmed the fact there is need to build the interest of Children into Agriculture from their early school days”
WOFAN’s School greenhouse is supported by WOFAN’s Project Office and agronomists drawn from both the public and private sectors to expose the pupils to Good Agricultural Practices in gardening while making it fun and highlighting healthy eating and growing our own fruits and vegetables in limited spaces. Crops planted by the pupils include tomato, groundnut, beans, cabbage, sweet pepper, pawpaw and most importantly the WONDER CROP- MORINGA.
Fadil El-Labib, one of the school’s outstanding young farmers who have joined the green revolution, is a shy 8-year-old in Primary 4 but his enthusiasm in the greenhouse drives shyness away as he answers questions with commendable eagerness.
He declared that he has become so interested in agriculture because of the greenhouse that he now maintains a garden in his parents’ backyard.
He said “At the beginning of the term, each of us planted tomato, beans and moringa in the greenhouse. We come here every day to tend the plants and log our progress. I enjoy looking after my plants and I am always happy to see them growing. This is why I have now planted beans in our house. My Daddy is helping me with the garden at home.”
Asked if he would want to become farmer when he grows up, Fadil explained that he wants to become a Doctor when he grows up but he would still farm because, “farming is a lot of fun and no matter what we do when we grow up, all of us should farm so that people will not be hungry.”
With such passionate from children like Fadil and his friends, it is safe to say that Nigeria’s green revolution is on course and its nutrition and food security targets will be met very soon.
