FG trains 50 extension workers to interpret climatic information

The Department of Climate Change, Federal Ministry of Environment has trained 50 extension workers on the interpretation of climatic information to farmers.

Acting Director of the department, Dr Peter Tarfa told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) the training became necessary as climatic information could not be easily understood by farmers.

“We have trained about 50 extension workers with Oxfam; we use Oxfam as an international NGO but undertook that training on behalf of the government.

“Take for instance for now, if the outcome of the Paris Agreement did say that farmers will be impacted in this way and that way, this is the information the extension workers will relay to them – farmers.

“Because most of the outcome (agreement) is too scientific for the farmer to really understand but the extension worker has the capacity because of their own training to interpret them to the understanding of farmers.

“So, that is the role of the extension worker, who is interfacing between us – climate department and farmers.

“They are already employees of ministry of agriculture, be it at the state be it at the federal.’’

Tarfa said there were plans by the department to train more extension workers on interpretation of climatic information for the benefit of farmers, who were the end user of such information.

“Of course, the issues of climate change are evolving issues, so as more information are coming, we will keep on relating those information, it is infinite.

“Information from the climatic point of view, we take it across to the extension workers.

“We are training them to be able to interpret the climatic information for the benefit of end users, who are the farmers,’’ Tarfa said