Business

Agric Ministry Records 68% Budget Implementation

Published

14 years ago

July 29, 2012

Minister of Agriculture, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, says his ministry recorded 68 per cent in the utilisation of the fund released to it from the 2012 budget.

The minister spoke shortly after briefing President Goodluck Jonathan on the key performance indicators on his ministry in relation to the 2012 budget.

We recalled that Jonathan had early this month directed each ministry to present an outline of the disbursements and utilisation of the 2012 budget to him.

The directive, according to the President, was to ensure that there were clear deliverables in terms of what the ministries, departments and agencies under them were doing.

Two ministries, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Ministry of Police Affairs, had earlier made presentation before that of the Ministry of Agriculture.

Briefing State House correspondents, Adesina said contrary to the belief in certain quarters, the ministry had recorded good performance in budget implementation based on the fund made available to it.

“In terms of the budget and how much utilisation, the total amount of appropriated capital budget to my Ministry was N48.1 billion.

“The amount of released to date to the ministry is N13.8 billion. The amount that we have utilised is N9.4 billion, which is a utilisation rate of 68 per cent.

“Bear in mind also that the amount that we got is 29 per cent of the amount budgeted for.

“When you look at the figure of 68 per cent, bear in mind that these are not for on-going projects. These are for new projects that we initiated after March 15.

“So, we have to do procurement on many things. We have to follow the procurement laws. You can’t just get up and spend money without following procurement laws.

“I think that many of the things that we are doing are well on track and I believe that as we enter the second quarter you will see that a lot will be drawn down.

“Remember that agriculture is different. Most of the things we are spending money on is on seeds and fertiliser deliveries to farmers.

“We have made a lot of those commitment and we have spent a lot of money in terms of that commitment and we have to make sure that we are able to get that back,’’ he said.

Adesina said the focus of the ministry had been in line with the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA) of the present administration.

He said the ATA goals were, among others, to achieve food security, reduce dependency on foreign exchange used in importing food, cutting down on food importation, diversifying the economy and job creation.

Adesina said the ministry had taken agriculture as a business and not as a development programme and was thereby generating wealth for farmers.

He said government had within 90 days sanitised the system against corruption in the purchase and distribution of fertilisers and seeds through major policy reform thrust.

The policy, according to the minister, encouraged the private sector to engage in fertiliser and farm inputs directly.

He said 4.5 million farmers had been captured in a database launched by the ministry on fertiliser and agriculture imput distribution and supply.

The minister said government had also successfully developed and commercialised cassava flour within 90 days as replacement to wheat flour bread.

Adesina also clarified that government would not place a total ban on rice importation by 2015 but would rather place a 100 per cent duty on the commodity’s importation.

Business

Boat Mishap Kills Pastor, Wife And Church Members In Brass Water

Published

3 hours ago

May 18, 2026

The Tide

A boat accident in Bayelsa state has killed a serving Pastor, Wife and other church members along Brass waterways

The sad incident happened at Odioama in Brass local government area of Bayelsa State when the Pastor, wife and members of his church were in a programme.

?Tide confirmed that the lifeless body of the Pastor’s wife has been found and deposited in a mortuary while the remains of her husband ,the Pastor is yet to be recovered

as search party are still ongoing.

Although the real cause of the boat Mishap is not yet known as at the time of this report, our Correspondent gathered that the identities of the Pastor, wife and church members were not disclosed to the public.

The mishap, Tide gathered occurred on Friday morning when the church members were on a boat transit

The Bayelsa State government and the state police command are yet to issue official statement’s on the sad accident

By: CHINEDU WOSU

Business

Rivers Workers Seek Scrapping Of Contributory Pension Scheme

Published

3 hours ago

May 18, 2026

The Tide

The Rivers State Council of Nigeria Civil Service Union has called on the State Government to urgently scrap the contributory pension scheme, describing it as unfavourable to long-serving civil servants in the state.

Chairman of the union, Chukwuka Osuma, said this in an interview with newsmen in Port Harcourt, recently.

Osuma said the current pension structure has continued to worsen post-retirement hardship for workers.

He noted that the contributory pension scheme had failed to provide adequate retirement security for workers who had spent many years in service, especially those approaching retirement age.

According to him, civil servants who had served for more than 20 years were among the worst affected under the scheme, insisting that many retirees could no longer cope with prevailing economic realities.

He also informed that the Union has made moves to showcase their concerns, pleading with Governor Siminalayi Fubara to abolish the pension policy and introduce a more favourable arrangement for affected workers.

“The union was not opposed to pension reforms, the contributory scheme should only apply to newly employed workers or those with fewer years in service”, he said.

Osuma explained that workers who had already spent decades in the civil service ought to remain under a more secure pension structure capable of guaranteeing stability after retirement.

The labour leader further noted that inflation and the rising cost of living had continued to erode the value of retirement savings, thereby increasing the suffering of pensioners across the country.

He also appealed to the state government to consider extending the years of service in the civil service from 35 to 40 years and the retirement age from 60 to 65 years.

Osuma argued that such adjustment had become necessary in view of present-day economic realities and changing conditions in the workplace.

The unionist also reviewed that similar policies had already been adopted in some sectors and jurisdictions, expressing optimism that the State could also implement the reforms for the benefit of workers.

He however, commended Governor Fubara for approving an N85,000 minimum wage for workers in the state, noting that the amount was above the national benchmark of N70,000.

Osuma also acknowledged the government’s efforts in the area of workers’ promotions and bonuses, but insisted that pension reforms and extension of years of service remained critical to the long-term welfare and stability of civil servants in Rivers State.

By: King Onunwor

Business

FG Begins South-West Tour To Promote New Cooperative Bank

Published

5 days ago

May 13, 2026

The Tide

The Federal Government has launched the South-West zonal engagement and ministerial advocacy tour on the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria share capital mobilisation, sensitisation and cooperative sector digitalisation.

Reports say the initiative was launched through the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security.

According to reports, the advocacy tour, organised by the ministry’s Federal Department of Cooperatives, began on Monday in Lagos.

Speaking at the event, the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security and Supervising Minister of Cooperative Affairs, Dr Aliyu Abdullahi, said the initiative was part of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

Abdullahi described the exercise as a strategic effort to reposition the cooperative sector as a key driver of inclusive economic growth, financial inclusion, enterprise development, food security and national prosperity.

“Today represents a defining moment in our collective determination to reposition the cooperative sector as a major driver of inclusive economic growth, financial inclusion, enterprise development, food security and national prosperity,” he said.

The minister noted the modern cooperative movement in Nigeria originated in the South-West following the 1934 Strickland Report, which led to the enactment of the Cooperative Societies Ordinance of 1935.

According to him, the decision to commence the sensitisation and share capital mobilisation tour in the region is symbolic, as it marks a return to the roots of cooperative development in the country.

Abdullahi said the advocacy tour was a direct outcome of resolutions reached at the 8th Regular Meeting of the National Council on Cooperative Affairs held in Abuja in March 2026.

He said the council approved the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme, a comprehensive framework designed to strengthen the cooperative sector and align it with the administration’s goal of building a one-trillion-dollar economy.

“The reform programme focuses on seven strategic pillars, including governance reforms, cooperative financing and the establishment of the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria, digitalisation, capacity building, value chain development, inclusion of youths, women and persons with disabilities, and strategic partnerships,” he said.

He said the establishment of the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria and the digitalisation of the cooperative sector were the two major transformational initiatives under the programme.

“The Cooperative Bank of Nigeria is aimed at rebuilding a strong cooperative financial system capable of supporting cooperators, farmers, artisans, traders, SMEs, youths, women and persons with disabilities with accessible and affordable financial services,” he said.

Abdullahi emphasised that the proposed bank would be government-enabled but not government-funded.

“Government is not establishing the bank as an owner, nor will it rely on Treasury Single Account funds.

“The role of government through the FMAFS is to provide policy support, stakeholder coordination, regulatory facilitation and an enabling environment under the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme,” he said.

Also speaking, the Lagos State Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment, Mrs Folashade Ambrose-Medebem, reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to cooperative sector transformation.

She described cooperatives as critical tools for promoting inclusive growth, grassroots productivity, food security, financial inclusion and community wealth creation.

Ambrose-Medebem said Lagos State would continue to support reforms and collaborate with stakeholders to ensure the successful implementation of the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme (2025–2030).

“Together, let us build a cooperative ecosystem that is modern, transparent, digitally enabled, financially inclusive and globally competitive.

“Let us build cooperatives that not only mobilise savings, but also mobilise prosperity,” she said.