A Nigerian UK-based
Public Analyst, Mr Temi Kpogho, has Thursday advised both the federal and state governments to adopt tax relief for the nation’s farmers to enable go into product processing.
Kpogho told The Tide source in Lagos yesterday on telephone that such a step would enable farmers to diversify into the processing, packaging and marketing of their products.
The analyst spoke against the backdrop of the difficulties faced by farmers in their bid to access credit to expand the scope of their businesses.
He said the recent reinforcement of the ban on frozen poultry products by the government had provided farmers the opportunity to make up for shortfall in the nation’s poultry needs.
Kpogho added that tax relief for farmers would encourage companies to be more involved in the agriculture sector and also as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) projects.
“Government should consider tax relief for farmers as it will mean that they have more funds to reinvest into their businesses.
“The government can also encourage companies to consider the agriculture sector for their CSR project.
“This will help to channel funds into the sector,’’ Kpogho said.
According to the analyst, all the sub-sectors in the agriculture chain should and be able to benefit from the economies of the scale of pooling.
Kpogho added that the railway system should be modernised and opened to investors to come in.
“We cannot continue to run our railway like an arm of the civil service.
“Farmers’ cooperatives should be encouraged so that they can benefit from the economies of scale of pooling their resources together,’’ he said.
He told reporters the authorities must do everything possible to ensure that the nation’s agricultural sector thrived the way it should for the benefit of the citizenry.