Information Technology as a Tool for Attaining Food Security and Sustainable Development in Nigeria

ABSTRACT:

In the face of rising pressure from climate change, rising populations and decreasing crop yields, Nigeria is faced with the task of confronting the critical challenge of efficiently delivering sustainable and healthy diets for her citizens. However, the poor performance of Nigeria’s agricultural sector has been attributed to the insufficient application of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) which has resulted to poor food availability and poor access and utilization problems at the household and national levels. ICT is required to successfully combine secure sustainable food systems through the application of innovative digital technologies that take into account the interactions between food and agricultural systems with broader industrial systems. This paper therefore outlines the possible roles of ICT as a tool for attaining food security and sustainable development of Nigeria. The paper advocates for a rapid action to harness the contributions of ICT towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a precursor to achieving food security.

Keywords:

Food security, Food availability; Information technology, Sustainable development, Crop yield, Nigeria.