The Federal Government has unveiled a five-year policy document to guide and boost agribusiness.
The focus of the policy known as “National Agricultural Technology Innovation Policy’’ (NATIP) is to develop 10 key areas; stakeholders synergy and alignment, knowledge creation and transfer, rapid mechanisation, agricultural development fund establishment, extension service delivery revitalisation and livestock development.
Others are priority crop value chain strengthening, fisheries and aquaculture, marine and inland fisheries development, market development, and agricultural lands and investments partnership.
The policy document also covers digital and climate-smart agriculture promotion, rural infrastructure development, nutrition, and export standardisation.
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Dr Mohammad Abubakar, while unveiling the document in Abuja, said the implementation has outlined responsibilities and roles among national, state and local government actors with clear indicators and timelines for robust and collective tracking of progress throughout the period of implementing the policy.
This, he said, was a response to the administration’s agenda of diversifying the economy from oil-based to agriculture and solid minerals.
To make Nigeria adequate in food production, healthy living and livelihood engagement, he noted that the Federal Government had strengthened the inter-sectoral activities and multi-stakeholders collaboration among government and non-government organisations.
“This collective effort sustains our continuous goal of harnessing and utilising the country’s human and material resources…
“It is on record that the ministry’s operations in the last six years has been shaped by agricultural Promotion Policy 2016-2020 along thematic areas of productivity enhancement, institutional realignment and private sector investment.
“This framework facilitated an appreciable increase in agricultural production and job creation through infrastructure, research, extension, mechanisation, and value chain activities in the country.
“While the ministry sustained various initiatives for development of the agriculture sector, the issue of embracing technology and innovation becomes inevitable for transforming the agricultural system of empowering small scale farmers to adopt new technologies and best practices for enhanced production and processing of agricultural commodities for consumption and export,“ Abubakar said.