The federal government is reforming the Bank of Agriculture, National Agriculture Development Fund and Nigeria Agriculture Insurance Corporation in order to work out a seamless way to guarantee farmers access to credit facilities, Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, has said.
Senator Kyari, who spoke on Tuesday November 28, 2023 on NTA “Good Morning Nigeria” programme, pointed out that in order to mitigate the problem of access to finance, government is subsidizing farm inputs to farmers while the process of reforming the three institutions is underway.
Stating that farmers were heavily impacted by flood in the last farming season, the Minister said that in order to mitigate their losses, they opted not to farm during this 2023 wet season which contributed to food inflation.
This, he said, was compounded earlier in the year by the federal government’s Naira redesign policy which came into full force during the harvest season earlier this year.
Market intelligence, according to the Minister, indicated that farmers sold their produce at give-away prices, which is the reason the federal government opted to subsidize inputs for farmers in 2023 dry season farming by taking advantage of African Development Bank (AfDB) facility.
Kyari advocated for local cultivation of wheat since it is in high demand for confectionaries and other daily needs, adding that it will also boost food security and improve the economic fortunes of farmers.
The Minister, who said that wheat importation will deplete the country’s foreign exchange, revealed that federal government is providing free wheat seeds to farmers while fertilizer is subsidized at 50% to enable farmers have access.
He stated that with the declaration of emergency on food security by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the focus of the Ministry is on how to increase yield using the available land for both dry and wet season farming, adding that the Ministry is deploying technology to harvest flood water for dry season farming.
The Minister however noted with concern the problem of lack of data on farmers, farms and their locations, pointing out that such data will help in monitoring the activities of farmers. But he revealed that the Ministry was working with State governments to provide the data to further help to monitor activities of farmers.
He said that extension workers system was being revived as well as deployment of technology in partnership with Federal Ministry of Communication and Digital Economy.
Senator Kyari, while bemoaning continuous use of local and obsolete tools for agriculture which has discouraged youth from venturing into the sector, emphasized the need for mechanization, announcing that the government is working towards making farmers have access to mechanization.
And to combat post-harvest losses, the Minister said that the Ministry has Silos across the country, some of which had been concessioned while some are undergoing rehabilitation.