Writing By Daniel Karlmax Editing By Godwin Duru
As part of the deliberate efforts and policy direction of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Bank of Agriculture (BOA) has this year approved a capitalization of one point five trillion naira, alongside an additional two hundred and fifty billion naira financing window for small holder farmers.
According to the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, the initiative is a step toward repositioning the Bank of Agriculture as the anchor of Nigeria’s agricultural financing.
The Minister made this known in Kaduna during the Forty Seventh National Council on Agriculture and Food Security, themed “Food Sovereignty and Food Security in an Era of Renewed Hope.”
Sen. Kyari further stated that, BOA had also launched the Renewed Hope National Agricultural Mechanization Program, a transformative tractor financing and management initiative designed to expand access to mechanization services nationwide.
According to him, the program targets a new generation of mechanization service to young farmers by providing access to fully equipped tractors, preventive maintenance support systems, and training to ensure proper use and sustainability.
To ensure nationwide reach and operational efficiency, he said one mechanization center will be established in each of Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones, serving as regional hubs for training and maintenance.
Through this program, the Minister noted that mechanization will become a national service that modernizes production and creates sustainable rural employment.
In line with the reforms of the current administration, Senator Kyari explained that the National Agricultural Development Fund has also been successfully operationalized as a key instrument for expanding access to agricultural finance and investment.
He noted that, the fund provides support for value chains, agribusiness ventures, and rural enterprises across the country toward ensuring that financing reaches intended farmers to boost food production.
“These frameworks,” the Minister emphasized, “are guided by the vision of President Bola Tinubu to ensure that food security is built on local capacity, national ownership, and inclusive growth”.
N”It is therefore fitting that this year’s theme, ‘Food Sovereignty and Food Security in an Era of Renewed Hope,’ aligns directly with this vision.”
“Food sovereignty speaks to our control over what we grow, how we grow it, and how we consume it. Food security, in turn, ensures that every household has access to safe, affordable, and nutritious food,” he added.
During a field visit to De Branch Farmers, the Quality Assurance Center (currently under construction), Tomato Jos, and the TMDK Agro Park, the Minister commended the impressive innovations, value addition, and rural job creation shaping Kaduna’s agricultural transformation.
Declaring the program open, Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna State commended the federal government for repositioning agriculture, and putting it at the center of the country’s economic architecture, through mechanization, value chains integration, improved inputs system and the modernization of rural infrastructure.
He further pointed that the national vision has been placed at the heart his governance agenda with agriculture as a moral and economic imperative, foundation of rural transformation, and engine of inclusive development.
“We have pursued deliberately interventions that empower both small holder and the commercial farmer that drive large scale production, we are expanding access to credit, improving inputs delivery, mobilizing logistics and nurturing a fertile eco system for agri business to thrive,
Mallam Uba Sani maintained that Kaduna state, being the agricultural hub of Nigeria is endowed with verse arable land and enterprising farmers, as the state is the leading producers of ginger, maize and grapes, as well as the second largest producers of soya beans.
Goodwill messages were delivered by stakeholders, representatives of the development partners including FAO, Tomato Jos Agro-Processing Factory, IFDC among others.
Awards were also presented to the best farmers in the state, recognizing outstanding performance in crops such as ginger, maize, and grapes among others.
The five-day program brought together representatives from the federal and state governments, development partners, and private sector stakeholders to brainstorm on strategies and create partnerships that drive innovation, best practices, and inclusive growth across the agricultural value chain.
Daniel Karlmax
