FG plans to open 100,000 hectares of irrigable land


The Federal Government is planning to open up a minimum of 100,000 hectares of irrigable land through the 12 River Basin Development Authorities by 2020 to achieve food security.

The plan is contained in Nigeria Economic Recovery and Growth Plan 2017-2020 (ERGP), a copy of which was obtained from the Federal Ministry of Budget and National Planning on Tuesday in Abuja.

The ERGP projects that Nigeria will make significant progress to achieve structural economic change with a more diversified and inclusive economy in five key areas by 2020.

The key areas are stable macro-economic environment; achieve agriculture and food security; ensure energy sufficiency in power and petroleum products; and drive industrialisation focusing on Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) as well as improve transportation infrastructure.

The Ministries of Water Resources and Agriculture and Rural Development are expected to take the lead in projects and programmes that will help the government to achieve the objectives of agriculture and food security.

The ministries are expected to also expand the use of dams for commercial farming and aquaculture.

According to the document, the strategy to achieve the plan will be to use irrigable lands and river basin infrastructure effectively to enable year-round agricultural production.

Specifically, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is expected to take the lead in key activities that will boost agricultural productivity by facilitating access to inputs, financing and extension services.

The document stated that the ministry would support the integrated transformation of the agriculture sector by boosting productivity of crops and other sub sectors.

Also, the Ministry of Water Resources is expected to fast-track the development and extension of irrigation projects.

According to the document, agriculture has contributed to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth in Nigeria in a consistent manner.

“The sector grew by 4.88 per cent on the third quarter of 2016 and as much as 13 per cent in previous years, suggesting immense unrealised potential.

“Investment in agriculture can guarantee food security, have the potential to be a major contributor to job creation, and will save on the foreign exchange required for food imports.

“Successful harvest will also help to reduce inflation and promote economic diversification.

“ERGP focuses on the need of the people by prioritising food security as a critical national objective, and plans are already in place for national self-sufficiency in rice by 2018 and wheat by 2019/2020.’’

However, the Ministry of Women Affairs is to take a visible lead by articulating programmes and projects that are captured in number 43, page 157 of the document.

The priority in number 43 states that the ministry should take a lead in social inclusion programmes by introducing social programmes for aged and physically challenged.

Key activities should include introducing a national relief programme for the aged, as well as inaugurate a national programme for the physically challenged and other vulnerable groups.

The ministry is also expected to design infrastructure to enable access for the physically challenged.

In addition, the ministry is expected to come up with activities that will expand the capacities of the Bank of Industry to enable it support manufacturing firms through low cost.

The ministry is also expected to take the lead in activities that will enhance access to the N250 billion CBN’s Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) by reviewing its design and implementing enabling initiatives to encourage on-lending.

Meanwhile, according to the ERGP, the Ministry of Budget and National Planning is expected to take a lead in developing and implementing the revised Population Policy, while Ministry of Health is expected to review current status of Population Policy.

The ERGP provides for effective collaboration and coordination with the states to ensure that the Federal and State Governments work toward the same goals.



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Tomato disease outbreak: Institute appeals for research funding

The National Horticultural Research Institute, Ibadan, has appealed for funding to carry out research and create awareness on the tuta absoluta pest on tomatoes. The Institute’s Head of Vegetable Programme, Dr Olagorite Adetula, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ibadan on Friday that there was an urgent need to tackle the problem to save the economy. Adetula said the institute needed money to do surveillance survey of the pest/damage, ascertain the impact of the damage and proffer solution for eradicating the pest. She appealed to the Federal Government to help the institute get pheromones to lure and trap the pests and distribute to farmers. ``Spraying insecticides is not the best, the pest has high production rate, some of them can escape while spraying it and they will be resistant to the insecticide thereby causing us more cost. ``The pheromones can be used for six to eight weeks before changing it, it is very effective, the pest has short life cycle, wit
Read more

10,000 women farmers to be engaged in ECOWAS rice project – official

Image
 Mr Richard Olafare, the President, Seed Entrepreneurs Association of Nigeria (SEEDAN) says 10,000 women will be engaged in the recently inaugurated Rice Seed Up-Scaling Project. This is contained in a presentation on the project made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Friday. Olafare said 8,000 youths would also be engaged in the scaling project. According to him, the number of women and youths represented 50 per cent and 40 per cent respectively of the 20,000 farmers that will participate in the project. NAN reports that the project is an initiative of the West Africa Seed Programme (WASP) in support of the ECOWAS Rice Offensive Programme that was inaugurated in 2014. Among other objectives, it is targeting the production of 60,000 metric tonnes of paddy rice for Nigeria by December 2017, using 1,200 certified seeds. The project is being implemented by SEEDAN in collaboration with the West and Central Africa Council for Agricultural Re
Read more

NEGPRO project can create more jobs with inclusion of meat production— Badmus

•Tuns Farm leads food safety, quality system audit The Chairman , Tuns Farms Nigeria, Asiwaju Olatunde Badmus, has disclosed that the proposed one million jobs expected to be created through the National Egg Production Scheme (NEGPRO) can be doubled if extended to meat production. He made this known when a team from the office of the Vice President, Federal Ministries of Agriculture, Health and Education at the company’s headquarters in Osogbo, the Osun state capital recently. Olatunde Badmus, while sharing the company’s experience on chicken inclusion in the Osun state’s school meal program which the company has been handling since the introduction of the school feeding program four years ago, said they can achieve so much more in terms of job creation through meat production “As we speak, six state governors among who are Kebbi and Borno, have signalled their government’s preparedness to look into this and have invited TUNS farm to their states to discuss modalities for
Read more