The Chief Executive of Green Energy & Biofuels (GEB), an African energy company generating power from bioethanol, Femi Oye, has called on the federal and state governments to promote the development of green agriculture to ensure sustainable growth and higher-quality products.
In view of the growing global efforts to change the farming process to adapt to the green consumption trend, Oye indicated that the government will help attract foreign investments if the agricultural sector is repositioned to contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
As the trend towards carbon emissions reduction continues, he continued that it has become pertinent for farmers to be encouraged and supported to adopt climate-smart agriculture practices, adding that it will not only help to protect the environment and reduce operating costs but also create a new income stream by selling carbon offset credits on a carbon market.
Like other countries in Africa, Oye, who is a Renewable Energy Senator, implored the government to take steps towards addressing climate change by evolving a carbon market that prices greenhouse gas or carbon emissions.
He also explained that establishing various platforms for carbon credits from agriculture would support current initiatives to combat climate change while enhancing farmers’ income.
In Europe and Asia, he states that the establishment of a carbon credit market has brought new opportunities for green agricultural development.
To achieve this, he counselled the government to complete the specific legal framework for the development and operation of carbon credit exchanges.
He reiterated that his organisation is ready to work with governments and the private sector to empower farmers to combat climate change through sustainable agriculture.
One way to achieve this, he stated, was by transforming crop waste into carbon-sequestering, known as biochar, with the help of smallholder farmers. The sustainable approach, he maintained, would address greenhouse gas emissions and support the well-being of rural communities.
A major goal of the organisation, he mentioned, was to revive traditional foodways and help restore plant biodiversity across the country.
GEB as an organisation, he posited, recognises that the health of the environment goes hand in hand with that of communities and supports the establishment of a sustainable food production system that satisfies the farmer, the local community, and the consumer, keeping the health of the soil and the people as the priority.
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