Nigeria Capacity Building on Stored Commodities

In October 2009, a two week in-country assessment was conducted by three experts in post-harvest engineering technology and stored-products protection from three different U.S. land-grant universities (Purdue, Oklahoma State, and University of Kentucky) to investigate the state of grain storage systems and practices in Nigeria. A major finding of the assessment was that basic proper stored grain management practices are lacking at all levels (federal, state, and on-farm) and that the implementation of short-, medium-, and long-term training in Nigeria at all three levels of storage will help mitigate the problem. As a result of the assessment, two workshops on commodity protection and management in silo storage systems were planned and successfully conducted in Makurdi and Akure in March 2010 (Workshop I). Subsequently, a similar workshop was conducted in Feb 2012 with the aim of equipping trainers with an in-depth knowledge of the technical aspects and communication skills required to effectively train other stakeholders in grain storage and handling operations. This train-the-trainer workshop (Workshop II) was conducted at the IITA in Ibadan. These activities led to additional workshop for warehouse managers and a refresher course as requested by a partner at the Nigerian Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (Workshop III) in August, 2013 in Abuja. The final meeting (Workshop IV) was held at the IITA in Ibadan in June, 2014 to target on-farm grain and warehouse storage managers, extension agents, and industry and university personnel. Participants of these workshops (total of 288) include farmers, grain merchants, extension educators, university professors, top level managers of the National Food Reserve Agency headquarters and State Buffer Storage Facilities, ADP directors, CEOs of private sector companies, and decision (policy) makers. Discussions with program participants has since identified a need to partner with other organizations that work to reduce post-harvest grain losses. Objectives outlined in this scope of work include broadening the audience by holding additional workshops and parterning with in-country scientists to identify sustainable applied research projects aimed at preserving grain quality during handling, drying and storage.