Connect with us

Business

FG Lists Gains Of Agric Roadmap

Published

9 years ago

on

The Federal Government
says the new Agricultural Roadmap is set to tackle some challenges of the Growth Enhancement Support (GES) scheme of the previous administration.
This is contained in the 2016 Nigeria Agric Sector Policy Roadmap which was presented by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, to the Federal Executive Councilý and approved.
The roadmap which is to run from 2016 to 2020 stated that: “The Agriculture Promotion Policy, is aimed at building and improving on the challenges of the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA).
“Access to inputs remains a challenge for achieving optimal productivity of agricultural outcomes.
“Attempt to address this issue in the previous government administration have resulted in subsidy programme known as GES which have been characterised by late or non-delivery of inputs.
“Other challenges encountered during the programme include delivery of sub-standard or counterfeit inputs and exclusion of rightful beneficiaries.
“The policy objective is to increase productivity by ensuring access to timely, high quality and price competitive inputs, “ it explained.
The minister said that the roadmap would ensure the availability of timely and high quality inputs by stimulating domestic production of good quality inputs especially seeds and fertiliser.
He added that the document would improve the functioning of the Seed Council and ensure standards, quality control mechanisms at various points in the relevant supply chains.
The roadmap would also tackle issues like the financing, access to market, pest and disease control, mechanisation, storage facilities, processing among others.
The Tide reports that GES is a Federal Government initiative designed to support the Agricultural Transformation Agenda of former President Goodluck Jonathan‘s administration.
It is aimed at subsidising the costs of agricultural inputs such as fertiliser and seedlings for farmers.
The Tide reports that under the GES, 4.2 million farmers had received seeds and fertiliser in the 2013 farming season, while about 20 million people had been impacted through the GES initiative.
The Tide also reports that with the GES scheme, Nigeria had reduced its food imports by over 40 per cent as of 2013, moving the country closer to self sufficiency in agriculture.
Although the scheme was productive, it encountered challenges of corruption and the quality of seed distributed to farmers as well as financial claims spent on inputs for 2014 farming season.

Related Topics:
Continue Reading

Business

Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

Published

21 hours ago

on

September 22, 2025

By

Kenya made it a clean sweep at the Berlin Marathon with Sabastian Sawe winning the men’s race and Rosemary Wanjiru triumphing in the women’s.

Sawe finished in two hours, two minutes and 16 seconds to make it three wins in his first three marathons.

The 30-year-old, who was victorious at this year’s London Marathon, set a sizzling pace as he left the field behind and ran much of the race surrounded only by his pacesetters.

Japan’s Akasaki Akira came second after a powerful latter half of the race, finishing almost four minutes behind Sawe, while Ethiopia’s Chimdessa Debele followed in third.

“I did my best and I am happy for this performance,” said Sawe.

“I am so happy for this year. I felt well but you cannot change the weather. Next year will be better.”

Sawe had Kelvin Kiptum’s 2023 world record of 2:00:35 in his sights when he reached halfway in 1:00:12, but faded towards the end.

In the women’s race, Wanjiru sped away from the lead pack after 25 kilometers before finishing in 2:21:05.

Ethiopia’s Dera Dida followed three seconds behind Wanjiru, with Azmera Gebru, also of Ethiopia, coming third in 2:21:29.

Wanjiru’s time was 12 minutes slower than compatriot Ruth Chepng’etich’s world record of 2:09:56, which she set in Chicago in 2024.

 

Continue Reading

Business

NIS Ends Decentralised Passport Production After 62 Years

Published

21 hours ago

on

September 22, 2025

By

The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.
Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, made the disclosure during an inspection of the Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja, last Thursday.
He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.
“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.
He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.
“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.
“We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.
“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.
He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.
Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.
According to him, the centralised production system aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for improved service delivery.
Continue Reading

Business

FG To Roll Out Digital Public Infrastructure, Data Exchange, Next Year 

Published

21 hours ago

on

September 22, 2025

By

The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has announced plans to roll out Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and the Nigerian Data Exchange (NGDX) platforms across key sectors of the economy, starting in early 2026.
Director of E-Government and Digital Economy at NITDA, Dr. Salisu Kaka, made the disclosure in Abuja during a stakeholder review session of the DPI and NGDX drafts at the Digital Public Infrastructure Live Event.
The forum, themed “Advancing Nigeria’s Digital Public Infrastructure through Standards, Data Exchange and e-Government Transformation,” brought together regulators, state governments, and private sector stakeholders to harmonise inputs for building inclusive, secure, and interoperable systems for governance and service delivery.
According to Kaka, Nigeria already has several foundational elements in place, including national identity systems and digital payment platforms.
What remains is the establishment of the data exchange framework, which he said would be finalised by the end of 2025.
“Before the end of this year and by next year we will be fully ready with the foundational element, and we start dropping the use cases across sectors,” Kaka explained.
He stressed that the federal government recognises the autonomy of states urging them to align with national standards.
“If the states can model and reflect what happens at the national level, then we can have a 360-degree view of the whole data exchange across the country and drive all-of-government processes,” he added.
Continue Reading

Trending