Fertiliser Production: FG To Encourage Direct Foreign Investment

The Federal Government is to encourage direct foreign investment in fertiliser production from the D-8 countries, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, has Dr Akinwunmi Adesina, said.

Adesina stated this in Abuja yesterday at a two-day D-8 private sector investment workshop on Gene Bank Development and Management and Investment in fertiliser production.

Reports say  that the D-8 is an organisation for cooperation among eight developing countries of the world.

They include Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan and Turkey.

Represented by Director, Federal Department of Agriculture (FDA), Mr Chris Ene, the minister said that efforts were being made to improve digitisation of soil maps that would provide nutrient levels of different soils.

He observed that this would develop appropriate recommendations that would be both soil and crop specific throughout the country.

“However, considering that this workshop is focusing on seeds and fertiliser, it is, therefore, imperative to bring to the fore what government is doing in the two sub-sectors.’’

Adesina explained that the Growth Enhancement Support (GES) scheme was a vital component of the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA), which would address parts of the agricultural input value chain.

He added that the GES had moved away from flat subsidy to targeted support and would reach about 20 million farmers.

The minister noted that government was also paying adequate attention to seed and fertiliser distribution and marketing.

He said that government had extended financial incentives to agro-dealers by providing them with bank facilities at reduced interest rate of seven per cent, and 70 per cent guarantee on the loan, principal under the ATA policy.

Our source also reports that the three priority areas of the D-8 meeting include the production and supply of good quality fertilisers.

Others are the production and supply of animal feed and the creation of seed banks to supply high quality seeds.

Earlier, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Martin Uhomoibhi, said that President Goodluck Jonathan had promised to increase the tempo of activities that would foster economic cooperation among D-8 countries.

He explained that participants are expected to have the opportunity to discuss on best strategies to mobilise private sector investment in critical areas of gene bank development and fertiliser production.

In his remarks, Mr Ezekiel Oyemomi, Permanent Secretary of the ministry, said that the workshop would allow member countries to share experiences and evolve common development strategies.

Represented by Mr Akinbolawa Osho, Director of Fertiliser of the ministry, Oyemomi told participants that Nigeria had enormous plant genetic and fertiliser resources for investment in gene bank development and fertiliser production.

He added that this had informed the growing advocacy by the present administration on Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) to the development of agriculture to support the economy.

Issues to be discussed at the meeting, he said, are the extent of implementation of D-8 Roadmap (2008-2018) on fertiliser and it would also examine trends in fertiliser demand and supply in member countries.

Others include considering the establishment of common financing mechanisms for fertiliser production and also considering energy, environmental safety and products stewardship issues.