Buhari set to launch N20bn loan for rice farmers on Tuesday

By Favour Nnabugwu

ABUJA-President Muhammadu Buhari (PMB) will on Tuesday officially launch N20billion ‘Anchor Borrowers’ Programme’ (ABP) which the Central Bank of Nigeria has set aside for rice farmers across the country.

General Buhari

The programme which is an initiative of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) aimed at creating an Ecosystem to link out-growers (Small Holder Farmers) to local processors will take place in Kebbi State.

Under the ABP, the CBN in a statement Saturday said it has set aside the sum of N20 billion from the N220 billion Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Fund (MSMEDF) for farmers at a single-digit interest rate of 9.0 per cent to address the challenges of poor funding.

The Governor of the CBN, Mr Godwin Emefiele who met with rice producers and millers recently, said that the developmental initiatives programme has been designed to create economic linkages between farmers and processors to not only ensure increased agricultural output of rice paddy, but also importantly close the gap between production and consumption by ramping up utilisation capacity of Nigeria’s integrated rice mills.

Emefiele said If these noble objectives can be achieved, it is not unlikely that the country will require even more integrated milling capacity to meet the huge local production of rice paddy.

According to him, “The essence of the meeting was not to apportion blames to any party on the current prevailing situation but to identify ways for all stakeholders to work together in a creative synergy to mop up any excess unsold paddy and going forward key into the CBN’s ‘ABP.

Emefiele who expressed optimism that the new initiative would work, urged millers and investors in the rice value chain who have been joined by representatives of the state governments of some key rice producing states to collaborate with the CBN to ensure that in the next few years Nigeria as a great country will no longer be one of the world’s highest importer of rice but a net exporter of the commodity.

He, however, said that the country can never fully attain its true potentials by simply importing everything into the country, stressing that such trend has resulted in the low operating capacities of the manufacturing industries and cannot be allowed to continue.

He explained that policy document of the programme also indicated that the anchor borrowers’ programme will build capacity of banks in agricultural lending to farmers and entrepreneurs in the value chain, reduce commodity importation. It will also reduce the level of poverty among small holder farmers and create jobs while assisting rural small-holder farmers to grow from subsistence to commercial production levels.

He identified lack of mechanisation, low quality inputs and poor funding as major hindrances to rice production in Nigeria but stressed that the programme was aimed at solving the problem of finance.

On the conditions for accessing the loan, the CBN boss said the farmers will be thoroughly trained on the global best agronomical practices.

“The farmers must be a member of a validated cooperative before applying for the loan. We will find out how much it will take to produce one hectare of rice to determine the amount that will be given to each individual. The idea is to enhance efficient management of the resources” he said.

Speaking further, he said Nigeria is a major rice producer with over 20 key rice producing states in the country with most cultivating under two seasons: wet and dry seasons.

“Rice is one crop in which the country has comparative advantage to easily become self-sufficient given the huge potentials that exists. Today, rice is no longer considered a luxury food to millions of Nigerians but has become a cereal that constitutes a major source of calories for both the rural and urban populations of the country.”

“Indeed figures from the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development indicate that in the period, 2012 to 2014 paddy rice production in the country grew from 4.5 million metric tones in 2012, to 7.89 million metric tones in 2013, peaking at 10.7 million MT in 2014.”

The Governor said that the capacity of the country to achieve even better production figures cannot be overemphasized, considering that only about 40 per cent of the available potential land area for rice production is currently being cultivated.

He stated that the production figures above show that in recent history, the country had never witnessed such rapid growth of paddy rice production.

Meanwhile, some dynamic features of this new agricultural initiative include the Identification and selection of Small Holder Farmers, grouping of out-growers into viable cooperatives/clusters, registration of the cooperatives, determination of the economics of selection and engagement of banks/ insurance companies, capacity Building of out-growers, banks’ staff and extension agents.

Other salient features of the initiative also include opening of bank accounts by cooperatives/farmers, loan application and disbursement, commencement of agronomic practices and distribution of agro-inputs at recommended periods.

Buhari set to launch N20bn loan for rice farmers on Tuesday

FG, private investors deploy 590 tractors to farmers

The Federal Government, in partnership with private investors, has deployed 590 tractors and post harvest equipment to farmers across the country so as to render mechanisation services to the beneficiaries.

According to the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the deployment which commenced recently was to commercialise the privatisation of agricultural mechanisation in Nigeria.

The Permanent Secretary, FMARD, Mr. Sunday Echono, disclosed this during a press briefing at the ministry’s headquarters in Abuja on Wednesday.

He said, “A significant step has been taken by the FMARD to commercialise the privatisation of agricultural mechanisation in Nigeria. Under this arrangement, no fewer than 590 tractors, various harvest and post-harvest equipment have been deployed to render mechanisation services to Nigerian farmers in 2015. This is being implemented based on a public private partnership forum.”

Echono stated that a total of 118 Agricultural Hiring Equipment Enterprises had been created through a government enabled self sustaining private sector driven agricultural mechanisation programme, established with a nationwide outlook, but meant to be implemented in phases.

He said the first batch of the first phase of the programme had been established with 400 tractors, 500 power tillers and harvest equipment.

The permanent secretary said, “These were won by 80 service provider operators across 28 states of Nigeria, including the Federal Capital Territory. They were selected through a highly competitive bidding process to emerge successful out of the 1,000 applications received.

“However, additional number of applicants considered qualified to take-of these centres are still on a waiting list for the subsequent batches of the AEHE deployment.”

Echono observed that in the first batch of the 80 AEHEs, the equipment for rendering agricultural mechanisation services had been deployed to the respective states, adding that their locations were demand-driven and depended in the choice areas of the service provider operators that won the bids.

“They were not government-determined or government-influenced.”

The permanent secretary further stated that the government had arraigned a training programme for all the potential tractor operators of the AEHEs to build their capacity on the usage of the equipment in order to maximise efficiency and reduce damage.

“The training programme will take place in the next three weeks at the Agricultural Mechanics and Machinery Operators Training Centre, while would-be managers will also receive their training at Agricultural and Rural Development Training Institute in Ilorin, Kwara State,” he said.

FG, private investors deploy 590 tractors to farmers

We’ll vote politicians with sound food policies – Farmers

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Nigerian farmers on Tuesday declared that they will only cast their votes for politicians with workable policies that will ensure food security and enhance agricultural production across the country when elected to official positions.

The farmers, who spoke under the aegis of the Association of Small Scale Agro Producers in Nigeria, whose parent body is the Voices for Food Security, stated that politicians should during their campaigns discuss how to improve the country’s agricultural sector, a development that would positively impact on the lives of farmers.

“Nigerian farmers will only vote for politicians with sound food policies. Policies that will ensure food security, considering the fact that the fall in global oil price is seriously affecting our country’s earnings negatively,” a representative of ASSAPIN, Mrs. Mariam Buhari, said.

Buhari, while speaking during a press briefing organised by Oxfam Nigeria, stated that Nigerian farmers decided to come up with a farmers’ manifesto, adding that politicians would have to endorse and pledge to commit to its dictates in order to drive the agricultural sector to amiable heights.

She said, “There are needs in the sector that have to be addressed. Particularly, women in agriculture face a lot of challenges and that is why we are saying that any politician that doesn’t have sound policies that will ensure meaningful improvements in the sector should forget our (farmers) votes.”

Speaking also at the briefing, a member of the group and Head, Madakiya Mondiccu Cooperative Society, Mrs. Monica Maigari, said it might be difficult for the government to fund its bills if it continues to relegate agriculture to the background.

She said, “Oil prices are nose-diving and Nigeria is losing revenue as a result of this. This is the time to harness agriculture so that through the sector the government can generate revenue to run its activities. But if farmers are neglected, then it will be tough for the government to actualise this.”

The Programme Officer, Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, Mr. Salaudeen Hashim, said food insecurity posed a pervasive and non-violent threat to the existence of individuals, considering the fact that hunger significantly shortens life expectancy, undermines quality of life and limits participation in income generating activities.

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We’ll vote politicians with sound food policies – Farmers

450,000 benefit from FG’s fertiliser programme in Kano

All Farmers Association of Nigeria said no fewer than 450,000 farmers registered under the Growth Enhancement Support scheme in Kano state benefitted from the Federal Government’s fertilizer programme this cropping season.

The association’s Secretary in Kano state, Alhaji Garba Bichi, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Kano on Saturday.

Bichi said that each of the farmers got two bags of fertilizers, which were distributed at 94 designated centres across the 44 local government areas in the state.

He expressed optimism that aside from the fertilizers given to the farmers, the state would record abundant harvest this year in view of the amount of rainfall already recorded.

According to him, at the beginning of the cropping season, many farmers were afraid of what their yields would be due to inadequate rainfall but later the rains increased and things stabilised.

“So, this year, we are expecting bumper harvest in rice, maize, sorghum and beans, especially in Kano state,” he said.

Bichi called on the Federal Government to put measures in place to assist the farmers by purchasing the excess or surplus grains from them.

He said that the measure would encourage the farmers to remain in the business in view of the fact that farming was no longer lucrative.

“Most farmers are now operating at a loss as the cost of producing a bag of maize is about N4, 800 but it hardly fetches N5, 000 when you take it to the market.

“So, the government has to come in if farmers are to be encouraged to remain in the business,” he said.

He commended the Federal Government for the additional support it was giving to rice farmers, saying that the gesture had attracted more farmers in the country to rice production.

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450,000 benefit from FG’s fertiliser programme in Kano