The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security in Nigeria has unveiled its strategic roadmap for the next four years, which is targeted at ensuring Nigeria achieves food security in the coming years.
The roadmap highlights major areas in the agriculture sector that the current administration would focus on to ensure every aspect of agriculture is captured while ensuring availability and affordability.
It also “aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s agenda for food security in the country which includes Food Security, Economic Growth and Job Creation, Poverty Eradication, Inclusivity (Youths and Women) and enabling environment for individuals, groups, and the private sector to participate in governance and economic activities.”
Dry season farming, Irrigation, fertilizer blending/availability, special focus on wheat production, availability of seeds and land mapping, data management, youth and women in agriculture and a host of other planned activities are also contained in the holistic roadmap.
Actions
The strategic roadmap comprises of four parts which includes The Immediate priority actions ongoing to the end of 2023, Short–term priority actions (2023 – 2024), Medium term actions – 2024 -2026, Long Term actions – 2024 -2027
The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security Abubakar Kyari alongside the Minister of State for Agriculture Aliyu Abdullahi while reeling out the roadmap and way forward in Nigeria’s agriculture to journalist in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital. Says, the ministry under their leadership would adopt a multifaceted and multi-pronged approach while engaging other Ministries, Departments, and Agencies, MDAs, and State Governments towards addressing all issues impacting the attainment of national food security objectives.
According to the Minister, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security under him would be guided by some lessons learnt in the implementation of the National Agricultural Technology and Innovation Policy, NATIP, which was launched for 2022-2027.
The minister noted that his team is currently reviewing existing projects to ensure due diligence while carrying out stakeholders analysis to produce stakeholder’s maps.
“In doing so, we are currently reviewing existing projects to ensure due diligence in achieving this alignment with minimal distortions while keeping conHealth Council Partners 3DATX On Vehicular Emission Testingfidence-building measures in place to get the total buy-in of our stakeholders as partners in progress”
“To this end, the Ministry is in the process of carrying out a robust Stakeholder analysis that will produce a working stakeholder map showing who does what, where and how and what are the mutually beneficial areas for the small holder farmers, large scale farmers, processors, marketers and the organized Private Sector. This in itself will bring about resource-use efficiency while reducing duplication and wastages”
Kyari said the current state of food security requires his team working all year round to ensure increased food availability and affordability.
“The current state of food security is threatened by issues of availability and affordability. Furthermore, malnutrition and the rates of food inflation requires that we work all year round to ensure increased food production while putting in place measures to make food available, accessible, affordable, and of the right nutrition on a sustainable basis”
He said that with the support of all relevant stakeholders, the narrative of the agriculture and food security sector would change for the benefits of the welfare of Nigerian farmers.
Shakirat Sadiq
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