Nigerian Government, IFAD Partner on N6bn Annual Rice Import Bill
The National Coordinator, Value Chain Development Programme (VCDP), Dr Fatima Aliyu, has disclosed that the Federal Government of Nigeria in partnership with the International Fund for Agricultural Development is working to reduce six billion naira spent annually on rice importation.
Aliyu made this known during a media interaction tagged ‘Media Roundtable’ in Lafia, Nasarawa State at the weekend.
Speaking, the coordinator said the programme had empowered about 7,749 rice and cassava farmers in five Local Government Areas of the state, including Lafia, Doma, Wamba, and Karu, with farm inputs and equipment.
Represented by the Knowledge Management and Communications Advisor, IFAD, Vera Onyeka-Onyilo, Aliyu emphasized the need for the media to disseminate accurate information about the programme via reportage, saying the VCDP has transformed lives of many participating Nigerians.
According to her, the VCDP, being a programme of the Federal Government of Nigeria and IFAD, is an important initiative that the media needs to ensure proper understanding and involvement of Nigerians.
The coordinator stressed that the essence of VCDP by the Federal Government was to drastically reduce importation of rice and other commodities.
Her words: “The Value Chain Development Programme (VCDP) is an initiative of the Federal Government of Nigeria and the International Fund Development (IFAD), and we are holding this interaction because we value the contributions of the media to Nigeria’s development. We value the contributions of the media when it comes to increasing the agenda for women and youth in agriculture, in supporting the government of Nigeria, in creating awareness on specific interventions that have been done in the agricultural sector. In VCDP, we felt the need to come together to engage with you ,our media partners, to see the enormous contributions when it comes to increasing visibility and awareness. The VCDP mandate and rationale is that the Federal Government of Nigeria sought to reduce import (import substitution) and cut down over N6 billion spent on rice importation annually. The VCDP was designed in 2010 and 2011 to enhance the productivity and profitability of smallholder farmers and small and medium agro processors by improving their access to markets and capacity to increase yield as well as add value to locally produced raw materials through improved processing and packaging. Rice and Cassava (staple and cash crops) contribute significantly to income and household food security in rural areas,” Aliyu noted.
Agro Nigeria
