Writing by Ibrahim Suleiman;Editing by Abubakar Hamza.
Federal Government has launched the Renewed Hope Agricultural Programme in Zaria, Kaduna State, as part of efforts to strengthen support for smallholder farmers, increase agricultural productivity, and enhance food security across the country.
Speaking at the flag-off ceremony, Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, said the initiative introduces a Guaranteed Minimum Price (GMP) system to protect farmers from exploitation by ensuring they sell their produce at fair prices through certified aggregators.
According to the Minister, the programme builds on Federal Government’s previous intervention, during which two million bags of fertilizer were distributed free of charge to farmers.
He explained that the new initiative would also guarantee timely access to quality seeds, fertiliser, and extension services.
Senator Kyari maintained that the programme sets address the challenges of climate change through collaboration with the Nigerian Meteorological Agency-NiMet, which would provide farmers with weather forecasts and advisories on the most suitable planting periods.
He stessed that the introduction of drought-tolerant and heat-resistant seed varieties would further improve agricultural productivity.
Senator Abubakar Kyari disclosed that the Federal Government is prioritising smallholder farmers, who account for about 90 per cent of Nigeria’s farming population and produce approximately 85 per cent of the nation’s food.
The Minister noted that improving their productivity was critical to achieving sustainable food security.
In a remark Managing Director of the Bank of Agriculture, Mr. Ayo Sotinrin, said the bank was implementing an innovative agricultural financing model that provides farmers with quality farm inputs at affordable prices and concessional loans, at a single-digit interest rate of nine per cent.
He explained that the programme combines financing with extension services, monitoring, and evaluation to ensure farmers adopt modern agronomic practices and improve yields through the use of certified hybrid seeds.
The Managing Director also disclosed that the Federal Government aims to increase Nigeria’s grain production from about 11 million metric tonnes to at least 25 million metric tonnes by raising average yields from one tonne to a minimum of five tonnes per hectare.
Mr Sotinrin further revealed that 20 of the country’s best-performing agricultural aggregators were selected from over 1,240 applicants to implement the programme.
Some of the Farm inputs distributed include,bags of Urea Fertilizers, NPK, Seeds and Insecticides.
In a goodwill message, the Emir of Zazzau, Ambassador Ahmed Nuhu Bamalli, represented by the Sarkin Noman Zazzau, Alhaji Aliyu, commended the Federal Government for supporting local farmers.
He expressed confidence that the initiative would boost agricultural production, improve farmers’ livelihoods, and contribute significantly to national food security.
Some of the beneficiaries expressed appreciation to the Federal Government for the intervention and pledged to make judicious use of the farm inputs to increase production and improve their livelihoods.
