Nigeria and the UK-based Zander Corporation will work together to improve farming methods and repair degraded areas. In order to counteract Desertification and encourage sustainable land use, Vice President Kashim Shettima reiterated the government’s commitment to afforestation. Lord Raymond Benedict Asquith and other members of Zander Corporation’s leadership met in the Presidential Villa in Abuja to discuss this relationship. Nigeria has received a £250,000 Donation of Afforestation Technology from Zander Corporation. The program will start with a five-hectare trial project that will concentrate on producing vegetables and tree crops like cashew.
Given the interest already being shown by the states of Sokoto, Borno, and Katsina, Shettima voiced confidence in the project’s success. Lord Oxford highlighted Zander Corporation’s extensive presence in Nigeria, noting that the business has been doing business there for more than 12 years. Similar projects have been successfully carried out by the company in desert-prone areas such as Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Libya, and Spain, greatly lowering Irrigation costs and enhancing agricultural sustainability. In order to save expenses and generate employment, he also recommended setting up local Manufacturing in Nigeria.
This initiative was endorsed by other government representatives.
According to Saleh Abubakar, Director-General of the National Agency for the Great Green Wall (NAGGW), a committee has been established to supervise the use of Zander Corporation’s technology. The pilot project, which aims to increase agricultural resilience in desert-prone areas, is already in progress in the states of Katsina, Borno, and Sokoto. The initiative was endorsed by other government representatives who attended the conference. Zander Corporation specialises in afforestation technology that help plants grow in difficult conditions, such as desert and salty areas.
By adding organic matter and helpful microbes, their unique solutions, like Zander Organic (ZO) and Zander Mycorrhiza (ZM), improve soil fertility and plant growth. For example, in Kuwait, Zander successfully tested a 75 km² beachfront property with high alkalinity (up to pH 9) and extremely saline soils (salinity levels surpassing 35,000 ppm). After using ZO and ZM, they were able to enhance the growth rates of the grey mangrove (Avicennia marina) by 35% when compared to control groups. As a result, the technology was adopted for the site’s overall landscaping.
Arid regions can become productive agricultural zones.
Zander’s ideas have been applied outside of Kuwait in arid parts of Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Libya, and southern Spain. In these areas, they have developed sustainable vegetation in parched soils and drastically decreased irrigation expenditures. Nigeria is poised to revitalise degraded areas through the use of Zander Corporation’s afforestation technology, especially in the desertified northern regions. With the help of these technologies, arid regions can become productive agricultural zones by improving soil fertility and moisture retention. A five-hectare location is part of the pilot project, which aims to grow high-demand tree products like cashew and vegetables to meet the demands of the global market and maybe increase farmers’ incomes.
One of the major issues facing Nigerian Agriculture is the technology’s potential to decrease the need for irrigation, which could result in more sustainable water use. Beginning with a five-hectare trial project spanning Katsina, Borno, and Sokoto states, the partnership between Nigeria and Zander Corporation has already finished land preparations. The full-scale rollout’s precise timeframe has not been made public, but the pilot phase is now in progress. The results of the pilot, stakeholder involvement, and obtaining required funds will probably determine the decision to move forward with wider deployment. There are several obstacles that could affect the project’s outcome.
Related Article: Addressing Nigeria’s deforestation issue
Getting steady funding is important; project momentum may be hampered by changes in funding, as demonstrated by comparable projects that suffered from funding reductions. Even though Zander’s approach has worked well in arid areas, harsh weather or erratic weather patterns could endanger recently planted flora. It can take a lot of time to comply with regulations and secure the required permits. In the past, Nigerian projects have been delayed due to bureaucratic bottlenecks and inconsistent government regulations. Making sure local communities are supported and involved is essential. Residents frequently oppose or refuse to cooperate with projects that ignore their requirements or do not include them in the planning and implementation process.