SUL solicit support to enhance the use of underutilized legumes

In a bid to solicit for support and increase awareness on the importance of underutilized legumes, the President of the Society for Underutilized Legumes (SUL), Dr Taofeek Tope Adegboyega who also represented the IITA Chapter, recently visited the National Agricultural Extension and Research Liaison Services (NAERLS), Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, to advocate for enhanced support from stakeholders towards the promotion of underutilized legumes in Nigerian farming systems. Discussions during the visit focused on ways to leverage the untapped potential of indigenous legumes to improve food and nutrition security, and economic stability for smallholder farmers in Nigeria.

Raising the critical need to diversify agriculture, particularly by promoting and incorporating lesser-utilized legume varieties such as Bambara groundnut, African yam bean, and pigeon pea, Dr Adegboyega called for alignment of activities among stakeholders from the academia, national research systems and agricultural research organisation.

According to him, these legumes hold immense promise for enriching soil fertility, increasing farmer resilience to climate challenges, and offering more nutritious food options for Nigerian communities.

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