[size=14pt]FG Unfolds Blueprint on Agricultural Revolution[/size]
21 Oct 2011
Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina
By Kunle Akogun

The Federal Government, Thursday, unfolded a blueprint for the transformation of the nation’s agricultural sector, projecting that it would realise over N410 billion from rice and cassava flour production by the year 2015.

But the revolution would bring about the decentralisation of the Ministry of Agriculture and the creation of six regional directorates to ensure that agricultural development was built from the grassroots.

In addition, about N2 billion would be provided in the 2012 budget for young commercial farmers to encourage them to grow food for the nation.

Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, made these declarations when he appeared before the Senate Committee on Agriculture. He said if fully implemented, the programme was expected to create about 3.5 million jobs in the sector. In order to ensure a success of the programme, he said a National Agriculture Transformation Council, has been set up with President Goodluck Jonathan as Chairman.

Adesina stated that about N350 billion would accrue to the nation's economy by the end of 2015 following the import substitution policy for rice, while over N60 billion would be generated from substituting 20 per cent of bread, wheat flour with cassava flour.

According to him, the strategies needed to ensure the actualisation of the goals include passing legislation that would make it mandatory for flour mills to utilise 10 per cent of cassava flour as substitute for bread wheat, blending of 10 per cent of ethanol made from cassava with petrol, ensure zero tariff for import of agricultural equipment and provide tax holidays for investors in the agriculture sector.

“The Land Use Act needs to be reviewed to ensure that land is made accessible to farmers. We may have to remove it from the Constitution so that land can be freed for large scale agriculture.


The Nigeria Agricultural Insurance Corporation has been a monopoly, we are liberalising the agricultural insurance market so that private companies can go in and compete in order to ensure that farmers pay lower premiums,” he said.


Adesina stated that for the programme to achieve its targets on rice, government must increase the current tariffs on brown rice from five per cent to 35 per cent to discourage further import and protect local farmers for the objectives to be realised.

Adesina also noted that with the decentralisation of the ministry, collaboration with states in agricultural development would be effective and evaluation of results would now be easier.

Under the new policy, government would no longer be involved in the distribution of fertilisers. He urged the National Assembly to ensure the voting of 10 per cent of the national budget to agriculture instead of the current three per cent.

However, Senator Bukola Saraki, expressed fears over the implementation of the programme, stressing that rice importers could sabotage the project because of the huge gains they make from importation of the commodity.

http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/fg-unfolds-blueprint-on-agricultural-revolution/101014/

Good plans. Especially regional undertone to it. But I'll think the minister should really concentrate on Palm oil and Cocoa since we already have a comparative advantage in it.

Sounds good on the surface of it, but I would rather keep my fingers crossed where Nigerian "plans" are concerned.

Enough of blueprints already, about time we start seeing some actions and results.

BTW, whatever happened to all the Rice/Cassava initiatives under Obj?

OAM4J:

Enough of blueprints already, about time we start seeing some actions and results.

BTW, whatever happened to all the Rice/Cassava initiatives under Obj?

I remember that-lol.

OAM4J:

Enough of blueprints already, about time we start seeing some actions and results.

BTW, whatever happened to all the Rice/Cassava initiatives under Obj?

How can you have results without plans, maybe without even working? Where are these results supposed to come from?

jason123:

Good plans. Especially regional undertone to it. But I'll think the minister should really concentrate on Palm oil and Cocoa since we already have a comparative advantage in it.

You noticed that too?

But the revolution would bring about the decentralisation of the Ministry of Agriculture and the creation of six regional directorates to ensure that agricultural development was built from the grassroots.

Before we know it, true federalism would have hit us. Its creeping in by stealth everyday, very clever tactics. Lol!

“The Land Use Act needs to be reviewed to ensure that land is made accessible to farmers. We may have to remove it from the Constitution so that land can be freed for large scale agriculture.

This is by far the most powerful statement in the article. ND intellectuals especially, will immediately appreciate the force and power of that innocuous statement; if only Saro Wiwa could have seen this day.
We don't need a lion, tiger or general! Lolz!

Beaf:

How can you have results without plans, maybe without even working? Where are these results supposed to come from?

Let just say I expected all the plans to have been put in place long before now and by now we should be seeing some actions and possibly some results.

I also noticed that the results of the blueprint will come by the end of 2015, after the next general election, so nobody can query any sign of failure of the blueprint before the next general election. Smart!

I agree with this sentiment. Nigeria has a way of coming out to announce things that "will" happen in the distant future.

The other day it was Ajaokuta Steel Rolling Mill that "will" start production in a couple of months. Similar statements about refineries several months ago, and the level of power generation.

As they say there is no end to tomorrow.

OAM4J:

Let just say I expected all the plans to have been put in place long before now and by now we should be seeing some actions and possibly some results.

I also noticed that the results of the blueprint will come by the end of 2015, after the next general election, so nobody can query any sign of failure of the blueprint before the next general election. Smart!

OAM4J:

Let just say I expected all the plans to have been put in place long before now and by now we should be seeing some actions and possibly some results.

I also noticed that the results of the blueprint will come by the end of 2015, after the next general election, so nobody can query any sign of failure of the blueprint before the next general election. Smart!

I think you are just making up obstacles. The article says:

In addition, about N2 billion would be provided in the 2012 budget for young commercial farmers to encourage them to grow food for the nation.

In other words, the effects will be felt in under a year and by 2015, we should be raking in 350billion per annum by growing our own rice and a further 60billion by growing our own wheat (or wheat substitutes).

As for the plans just kicking off, the current tenure is only a few months old, therefore all policies are just beginning to take off. They couldn't have completed any plans in detail before the appointment of the executing ministers.

So many blueprints.

koruji:

Sounds good on the surface of it, but I would rather keep my fingers crossed where Nigerian "plans" are concerned.

abi.

Is it just rice and cassave or is it other food too?

The Land Use Act needs to be reviewed to ensure that land is made accessible to farmers. We may have to remove it from the Constitution so that land can be freed for large scale agriculture.

. . . Eagerly waiting for that bill and others like it. 2 years is more than enough. Regionalism, local Govt police and removal of state control over local Govt affairs must accompany this too.

I dey wait.

Don't b fooled.

D minister talked much wtout saying anything. Anyone wt good understanding of problems of agriculture in Nigeria knows dt Land tenure is one of d biggest problems. Isn't it ds realization dt made d late UMYA harp much on land reforms? This was at heels of serious challenges faced under Obadanjo's tenure agric programmes. Anyone accusing OBJ programme of non or bad blueprint is ignorant and should keep quiet. UMYA couldn't complete his land reforms, so what happened wt it wt his successor on continuity?

U don't go about placing d cart before horse, land reform must b before any blueprint can b successful on mega scale. It's a sine qua non under d present reality. If dt hasn't been addressed yet, then d dream is still far away and just remains a pipe dream.

Also, did u see amount proposed to aid youths? Paltry N2bn. Sorry, how much is expected to trickle down to a youth amidst millions dt will effect ds change? If there r 5 million youth farmers ( conservative figure), it will amount to N400 per head excluding administrative charges. Isn't ds a stupid joke ?

Did I hear attempt to blend ethanol from cassava wt petrol to make bifuel? Only in Nigeria will a govt falsely imagine dt consumption will trigger higher production. Other countries made provisions dt will enhance production before converting staple food crops for non food purposes. In those places, large corporations acquired expanse of lands and went on mechanized farming. In our case, mechanized farming is a minuscule fraction of our farming population and output, so the burden is going to b on peasant farming which output matching strenght will yield/fail under stressed consumption. What we hav here is a blueprint of increasing hunger and price of available food with plans for minimal food production growth.

Honestly, to me, it looks like another blueprint to bring money out for d party boys and not an objective and pragmatic approach to agric improvement.


Nota Biene: all foolish paid political spin masters may howl all they like.

Hmmn!anoda avenue 2 loot d treasury!lets wait and c

this is a very useless nation, when it comes to agriculture which should be our piority you start hearing small amount like 2 billion while they 50 billion on independence.

grafikii:

this is a very useless nation, when it comes to agriculture which should be our piority you start hearing small amount like 2 billion while they 50 billion on independence.

dats because we hav always had useles myopic leaders.even d gudluck fella is a disappointment.dem swear 4 us

Where is the blue print?

Kilode?!:

. . . Eagerly waiting for that bill and others like it. 2 years is more than enough. Regionalism, local Govt police and removal of state control over local Govt affairs must accompany this too.

I dey wait.

GEJ is proposing a about 50 constitutional changes aside from changes to (or outright abolition of) the land use act. They are all generally about rejigging our national structure; there are proposals that will beef up regionalism.

Most importantly, there is a proposal to make the local govt the most important unit of govt and development through a vastly enhanced revenue allocation model, this is the way it is done the World over and it would throw off every last vestige of the primitive unitary system we practice and cloth as federalism; the governors have kicked very angrily against this (just as they kicked selfishly against the SWF), because it would cut off their free Abuja allocations, but such is to be expected.

Lets watch the space and put in constructive critisisms and suggestions as govts begins to unfurl its policies. There is quite a big basket of goodies that should set the country firmly on the path of progress for the very first time in our ridiculous history.

pkv:

Hmmn!anoda avenue 2 loot d treasury!lets wait and c

grafikii:

this is a very useless nation, when it comes to agriculture which should be our piority you start hearing small amount like 2 billion while they 50 billion on independence.

Eko Ile:

Where is the blue print?

Just a year ago, we never had this level of intellectually poverty stricken posts. What has happened to Nairaland that people no longer think before posting and the educated now speak like market women?

Its truly saddening. Please, if you cannot address a topic then, keep quiet and watch.

are we really sure there is no foreign bodies enterferance in our domestic policies? these futuristic plans by our various govts smells of dictates otherwise i see no reason why something like wheat should be made to appear as if it is a foreign grain like appple that cannot be harvested in nigeria! are we sure that some "experts" imf or fao and world bank are not issuing superior advice to our govts b/cos of the huge amount of money is involved in importing this grains particularly from asian countries? i know that wheat is being harvested in almost all the states in the north and with a little encouragement and assistance to farmers by the three tiers of govt millions of tons can be harvested even by the end of next years dry season farming. so why this future plan and why the substitution involved when we have a variety of cassava that has more economic advantage that the one that will be used for bread making?

homerac7:

Don't b fooled.

D minister talked much wtout saying anything. Anyone wt good understanding of problems of agriculture in Nigeria knows dt Land tenure is one of d biggest problems. Isn't it ds realization dt made d late UMYA harp much on land reforms? This was at heels of serious challenges faced under Obadanjo's tenure agric programmes. Anyone accusing OBJ programme of non or bad blueprint is ignorant and should keep quiet. UMYA couldn't complete his land reforms, so what happened wt it wt his successor on continuity?

U don't go about placing d cart before horse, land reform must b before any blueprint can b successful on mega scale. It's a sine qua non under d present reality. If dt hasn't been addressed yet, then d dream is still far away and just remains a pipe dream.

Also, did u see amount proposed to aid youths? Paltry N2bn. Sorry, how much is expected to trickle down to a youth amidst millions dt will effect ds change? If there r 5 million youth farmers ( conservative figure), it will amount to N400 per head excluding administrative charges. Isn't ds a silly joke ?

Lol! You actually sound frightened that govt is coming out with visionary policies and making progress.

All you are doing is argue that we remain where we are. It is expected that such would come from the usual reactionery quaters that have kept the country backward for selfish percuniary benefit and the subjugation of the common man.

Your dirge about UMYA is neither here nor there. If his policy failed like Obj's, it is because he never took the bull by the horns to bin the backward land use laws. GEJ is doing just that with his proposed reforms, that is exactly how it should be done. If you say you do no like the fact that constitutional reforms are being proposed then you are arguing that we continue as we are, not making progress for another 50 years.

For the bolded, the article clearly states that the 2billion will be going to young commercial farmers, so your calculation that, "5 million youth farmers" will only get "N400 per head excluding administrative charges" is nothing short of voodoo. Nigeria does not need 5million commercial farmers, we only need a few hundred to a couple of thousand.

homerac7:
Did I hear attempt to blend ethanol from cassava wt petrol to make bifuel? Only in Nigeria will a govt falsely imagine dt consumption will trigger higher production. Other countries made provisions dt will enhance production before converting staple food crops for non food purposes. In those places, large corporations acquired expanse of lands and went on mechanized farming. In our case, mechanized farming is a minuscule fraction of our farming population and output, so the burden is going to b on peasant farming which output matching strenght will yield/fail under stressed consumption. What we hav here is a blueprint of increasing hunger and price of available food with plans for minimal food production growth.

Honestly, to me, it looks like another blueprint to bring money out for d party boys and not an objective and pragmatic approach to agric improvement.

Nota Biene: all foolish paid political spin masters may howl all they like.

Lol! This is at best a prayer for darkness. What do you find wrong with govt wanting to boost the production of cassava to such levels that we can use the surplus as bio-ethanol to be blended with petrol?
You haven't even understood the half of what is being said in the article, so you very sadly keep mentioning peasant farming. Dude, govt is decentralising the ministry of agriculture and approaching farming from a business point of view. The World of peasant farming would soon be yesterdays thing, with youth being encouraged to take up commercial farming and make Nigeria a food supplier in the next few years.
An efficient agricultural sector would also be a massive employer that would give our youth means to make money from honest means and go a long way to resolving our employment problems.

After reading the rubbish all over again, I got to admit it's the most intellectually lazy, dishonest and backward platitudes ever.

I need to understand why Wheat Flour is to be substituted with Cassava Flour, thought it would have been a better idea to encourage both together.

beaf how much them dey pay self

At least someone is now talking about Land reforms but what does it mean taking it off the constitution? Is that even possible? Land reform is the big elephant in the room and no one wants to touch it so am waiting to see them take an important step

Meanwhile, we always over promote emptiness in this country, what is revolution sef? Are the research institutes part of it and how can students access funds without unnecessary red tape they go through at the university level.

How can we incorporate the Fulani's into a better system without alienating them?
Hope the ministries are talking with each other, can the Lagos-Kano train network be used as a commercial and storage hub? Agricultural reform cannot be achieved by the Ministry of Agriculture alone. We shall see how it goes

I did not even bother to read it. This is not the first time the govt is releasing blue print for agric sector. They did it in 2004, as part of it was the sugar plantation farm in Jigawa. Yar'adua did the same thing and now GEJ.

Anything new? i doubt it much

I am a graduate of agric econs who just finished serving in taraba state. I have it in mind that I want to kick start my own MECHANIZED farming. Where are the funds, where are the land, the few subsides we have are being removed. The FUNDS are suffering from nepotism (padi padi) embezzleworm. We have heard the same story since IBB's tenure and today more GRAmmER. I mean, is it that hard. All we hear is BILLIONS today VISIONS tomorrow. We, the specialist are not seeing anything. LAND!!! (OMO O NILE), machete are still being produced. I value my Life. I will soon change discipline, YES, I will take SENATING for my masters degree!!! QUARTERLY ALLOWANCE SITTING ALLOWANCE!!!

[b]I hope this materialize. I just registered my poultry farm, and doing so cost me a big chunk of cash. And im doing it with the hope GEJ's blueprints will see the light of day.
So far, GEJ has displayed good intentions towards transforming the agric sector, and this is highly impressive. If the trillions spent annually on food importation is kept within the country, inflation goes down, and we can witness a decent growth in GDP and this will benefit every Nigerians at large.
I think GEJ and his economical team need to put in an extra system that can measure the effects of these program say quarterly or bi-annually. Most small scale farmers who constitute the largest chunk of the industry are constantly oppressed by lack of funds to mechanize their business. Expanding my poultry from 2000 to 5000 layers and adding 1000 broilers for the yuletide was so financially painful that I had to sell my half completed 3 bedroom in Ajah. Still, the money was short and I am still heavily in debt. Farmers, small and big scale, should benefit from this program and GEJ should please make sure this isnt another money down there drain.

@Beaf: I respect your aggressive marketing tactics (but note, you are doing a very horrible PR job ). If im any good as you, I will be a very successful real estate agent/farmer. Keep it up bro.[/b]