The Director General and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), Professor Charles Anosike has said that translation of meteorological data into actionable insights enables farmers to make climate smart decisions with confidence and resilience.

Prof. Anosike was speaking at a Chief Executive Officers breakfast session on wednesday, 16th October 2024 at Transcorp Hilton, Abuja, themed ‘Elevating the Role of Data and Information in the National Food Security Conversation’, organized by the Nigeria Economic Summit Group (NESG).

He said that the food system is increasingly threatened by climate change and the effects on food security are significantly acute in developing countries. Prof. Anosike observed that with heavy reliance on rain-fed agriculture, it is essential to empower farmers with weather and climate information to enable them to mitigate and adapt to the vagaries and complexities of climate change with confidence and make them resilient by making informed decisions.

Professor Anosike further said that NiMet is committed to providing timely data-driven solutions to curbing contemporary climate issues and boosting agricultural productivity.
“In recent times, we have seen the effect of climate change in Africa and across the world. The global climate system is very complex and cannot be controlled or managed by one institution or country. To be able to influence that system, we have to understand how the system behaves and that is where meteorology comes in. Meteorology brings climate science and data in support of climate disaster and climate change adaption”.

Prof. Anosike concluded that meteorological and climatological data are integral components of national food systems data information tools due to their significant impact on agricultural productivity, risk assessment for food security initiatives, supply chain management, and research development efforts.