Minister Wants National Blueprint On Agriculture

The Minister of Agriculture, Prof. Ahmed Abdullah, on Thursday urged stakeholders in agriculture to produce a national document for the implementation of ECOWAS/Comprehensive African Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP).

Launched in 2002, CAADP is an African initiative by NEPAD to boost agricultural production and growth in Africa.

The programme is also aimed at reducing poverty and contributing to the achievements of the MDGs in African countries.

Addressing the workshop participants in Abuja, Abdullah urged them to ensure that the document they would produce at the end of their deliberations would reflect the desire and aspirations of all Nigerians including rural farmers.

“The outcome of your deliberation is very important to the CAADP process in Nigeria as the position you will adopt at the end of the forum will be Nigeria’s position to be presented at the forthcoming Dakar business forum,’’ he said

Abdullah said that in line with ECOWAS guidelines, his ministry in collaboration with relevant technical partners, had developed a draft of National Agricultural Investment Plan (NAIP) document for Nigeria

According to him, the plan is a tool for the implementation of all actions under NAIP.

The minister said the policy to be implemented under NAIP would be in tandem with Common Agricultural Policy of ECOWAS member states.

According to him, the policy stipulates the pursuit of six per cent average annual growth rate, allocation of 10 per cent of the national budget to agriculture and assigning the roles and responsibility of the programme to individual countries, among others.

In his remarks on the occasion, Mr Ousseini Salifou, ECOWAS Commissioner for Agriculture, Environment and Water Resources, said Nigeria was strategically positioned to boost food production and nutritional security of its citizens.

He said priority areas of intervention outlined in NAIP were in line with the CAADP/ECOWAS agricultural policy.

Salifou promised that ECOWAS would continue to support the Federal Government in resource mobilisation and the implementation of its agricultural investment programmes.

“Over the last two years, ECOWAS has supported Nigeria technically and financially in the preparation of her National Agricultural Investment Programme and the formulation of its investment plan for 2010-2015,’’ he said.

Mr Ray Kirkland, USAID Mission Director, described the workshop as “an important step’’in focusing attention on the agricultural sector

He said that USAID would support Nigeria to develop its agricultural sector due to its critical role in providing food, job and income.