The Nation Newspaper

Category: Agriculture

  • Farmers’ group to tackle unemployment

    A group, African Farmers and Cultural Organisation (AFCO), has  mapped out strategies to reduce unemployment among youths through agriculture.

    AFCO, which has members across the country, aims at using agriculture to correct social vices due to unemployment, and to redirect the government’s policies towards agro-based economy.

    At its programme tagged: “Job creation/empowerment for the unemployed” in Lagos, its founder, Prince Chukwunwike Moses Esiole, said the  group was striving to create jobs through agriculture.

    He said the approach was to train youths to explore the various aspects of farming. “Any job seeker, who wants to go into farming and does not have the technical knowhow and logistics, AFCO will train you in the area you want to be specialised and empower you also. As a member of our organisation, if you do not have a job, no idea of what to do, no good educational background, and no skills, AFCO will develop your skills through our Institute of Fine Arts and  empower you financially.”

    Its Secretary-General, Francis Sokomba, said AFCO would organise a farmers’ friendship festival to promote  food  production  and  sustainable livelihood strategies.

    “Our traditions and heritage have always been powered by food rites, and our co-existence is relatively secured by agriculture. Through this event, we  are  welcoming ideas and seeking co-operation from Africans in the Diaspora,” he said.

    At the event were Chief Adione Gabriel Ifeanyichukwu, Mrs Tracy Esiole, Nollywood actor Victor Osuagwu and other top dignitaries.

  • Boosting sugar cane farming to create jobs

    Sunti Golden Sugar Estate in Mokwa, Niger State is poised to change the narrative in sugarcane farming.The estate comprises 17,000 hectares of arable farmland and a mill capable of processing 100,000 tonnes of raw sugar yearly, DANIEL ESSIET reports. 

    Nigeria is one of the major producers of sugarcane in Africa, with about 500,000 hectares of land which can produce about five million metric tonnes (mt) of sugarcane.

    According to  the National Sugar Development Council (NSDC), the five million metric  tonnes (Mt) of sugarcane will yield about three million mt of sugar if processed.

    However, despite the country’s potential in sugar production for local consumption, its reliance on importation has become worrisome as it produces only two per cent of its sugar requirement. Nigeria imports about 1.7 million tonnes of sugar, up from 1.3 million tonnes in 2016.

    To address this, there have been various private sector efforts to encourage increase in acreage and cultivation.

    It was against this backdrop that the sleepy town of Mokwa in Niger State witnessed the inauguration of the Sunti Golden Sugar Estates Limited, a subsidiary of Flour Mills of Nigeria (FMN ), by President Muhammadu Buhari.

    According to Buhari, the N50  billion estate will produce 100,000 tonnes of high quality raw sugar annually to feed Flour Mills Sugar Refinery.

    His words: “While we have had some challenges in the implementation of the National Sugar Master Plan (NSMP) in the past, I believe that our vision of attaining self-sufficiency in sugar in Nigeria is well within sight, with the kind of investment that has been made here. I am told that the Estate will engage up to 10,000 people directly once developed, including a network of over 3,000 small-scale outgrowers of sugarcane. This to my mind is central to this administration’s determination to create jobs and gainfully engage our people.”

    Niger State Governor Alhaji Abubakar Sani Bello said the  decision by Flour Mills to set up a sugarcane plantation in Sunti was the kind of step the state  needed to actualise its quest to boost agriculture. The investment, according to him,  is also an evidence of the unexploited potential in the sector.

    Such ventures, he stressed,  are needed and the plantation in particular in Niger State is timely, especially when the overnment is working towards developing a sustainable, diversified and competitive agricultural sector to ensure greater economic stability and growth.

    He  added that the state was interested in ensuring that more investors established enterprises to create jobs to improve people’s livelihood.

    Bello said: “For a long time now, lack of infrastructure has been one of the major hindrances to investment in agriculture. To this end, the government is working  to support infrastructure across the state.”

    He said while the state appreciated and welcomed investors as partners in development, it expected  them  to take part by investing in agriculture and helping to grow the economy and eradicate poverty.

    “Niger people are proud farmers. For many years, we have cultivated rice, sorghum, millet, cowpeas, corn (maize), palm oil and kernels, kola nuts and sugarcane for local consumption and export. To this end, agriculture has always been a top priority for our state and will always receive our utmost support.

    “When we declared 2018 as the year of ‘Agricultural revolution,’ in Niger State, it was a reminder to our people of the immense natural resources that we have been blessed with. And that is why projects such as  the Sunti Sugar Estate are a perfect model for investment in our state. From my last visit to Sunti Golden Sugar Estates in 2016 to date, I must say that I am delighted with the level of work and investment that has been put into this project,” Bello said.

    Flour Mills Chairman Mr. John Coumantaros said: “The farm at peak production will provide direct employment for about 10,000 people yearly, and impact up to 50,000 people indirectly, including 3,000 small-scale outgrowers, who will be cultivating sugar cane to feed the mill.

    “The project illustrates the desire to reduce sugar importation, save billions in foreign exchange, boost local capacity and reduce unemployment by putting thousands of Nigerians to work,” he said.

    He thanked the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Bank of Industry (BoI), the Ministries of Finance, Industry, Trade and Investment and Agriculture for their support for the project, adding that “a project of this nature could never have taken place without the staunch support of Mr President and the Niger State Governor.”

    He said N50 billion had been invested in the Sunti Golden Sugar Estate. The company, he said, has significantly invested in food and agro-allied value chains to align with the government’s agricultural initiatives.

    Flour Mills, he explained, is determined to ensure the success of agro-allied investments through maximising local content in the company’s final products while it remains committed to its policy of being involved at all stages of the food value chain: from farm to table.

    Enclosed within a 35-kilometre dyke, the production facility area is about 17,000 hectares, with a cane area of a maximum output of 10,000 hectares.

    The estate features the state-of-the-art irrigation system that will ensure efficient cultivation of sugar cane, with infrastructure, which includes drain pumps, pump stations and power grid.

    Drains, culverts and flood-protection walls have also been constructed. The state-of-the art operations bring new technology to the sugar cane farming and milling industry that is poised to increase production yield, create new jobs for Nigerians and teach them new skills. Currently, sugar cane is grown on 3,000 hectares and cultivated under irrigation, making it an annual crop, with 276 hectare (ha) furrow, 700ha pivot and the balance under sprinkler irrigation.

    It is harvested by hand and transported by road to the factory using haulage tractors to pull a pair of tandem trailers with a capacity for 30 tonnes of cane.

    The estate has brought infrastructure benefits to the surrounding community, with 28 communities taking advantage of the new 30-kilometre road plus expansive road networks, which provide a variety of access routes to indigenes’ homes.

    At the farm, smart agriculture is helping the company increase crop yield,optimise workers and machines performance .

    Processing will ensure every part of the cane is used.

    As a result of the steady demand for skilled workers, which will grow, Niger State will draw labour  from other states, and provide training for local workers.

  • Agric expo holds

    Aviana Nigeria International Expo 2018, an exhibition on business agriculture, will hold between April 25 and 26 at the International Conference Centre, University of Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

    Over 200 exhibitors from more than 25 countries will be participating, while about 10,000 visitors are expected .

    Its Assistant Country Project Manager Segun Makanjuola said the expo was designed to bring together various stakeholders in poultry, diary, aquaculture, livestock companies and farmers, animal health and nutrition, feeds and feed milling, hatchery/breeder farms, disinfectants, veterinary, pharmaceuticals, pet food and accessories, equipment, machinery, agro allied and trawler owners.

    He said the exhibition would help to promote technology and knowledge transfer.

    It wills be organised by Aviana International Exhibition for Poultry, Diary, Aquaculture and Equipment in partnership with Fisheries Society of Nigeria (FSN), Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN), Feed Mills Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, Crop Life Nigeria, Catfish Association of Nigeria,Ecowas Farmers Association of West Africa, All Farmers Association of Nigeria  and  Animal Science Association of Nigeria.

     

  • Verve partners UBA to aid Govt’s subsidy for farmers

    Verve International has signed a partnership agreement with United Bank for Africa (UBA) to deliver cost effective prepaid cards to farmers under the Zambian Ministry of Agriculture’s FISP program.

    As part of the partnership deal, UBA will issue Verve Prepaid cards in the next season of the Farmers Input Support Program (FISP), an agricultural subsidy initiative of the government to help farmers purchase agricultural inputs like fertilizer, seed and chemical at subsidized costs.

    Through the program, the government intends to boost food production in the country by funding the cards issued to each farmer with $170 while the farmers contribute $40 towards purchase of farm inputs.

    While many farmers in the country have benefited from the program since it started in 2015, the government plans to extend it even further with more than one million farmers expected to receive over two hundred and ninety million dollars ($290M) in funding during the 2017/18 season.

    In order to help the Government, combat the challenges of high cost of card issuance and transaction as well as the issue of accountability and transparency which have plagued the scheme for long, Verve has been contracted to provide its superior technology and affordable cards solution through Commercial Banks and other Financial Institutions in Zambia.

    Sharing his thoughts on the landmark partnership, Mike Ogbalu III, CEO, Verve International said:

    “Partnering with UBA on the FISP program is a huge milestone for us. We are really excited to work with Smart Zambia, UBA and other banks, farmers, agro-dealers and other stakeholders to ensure that the subsidy programme runs efficiently and achieves its objective of boosting food production in Zambia.  Food security is very crucial for every nation, as such, deploying Verve’s cost-effective prepaid card solution will help farmers in Zambia access the FISP subsidy quickly, conveniently and without hassle, thereby significantly improving agricultural activities and boosting food production in the country.”

    The introduction of Verve cards is expected to reduce card issuance costs by 30%-50% while also saving significantly in transactional fees. With its improved security feature Verve will effectively solve the FISP transparency and accountability issues. The government will also be able to access all the information it needs to ensure a smooth and seamless operation of the scheme and also eliminate leakages.

    Besides saving cost and ensuring greater transparency, Verve’s involvement in the FISP program also means more farmers can benefit from the subsidies, as costs would be greatly reduced, thereby leading to a significant boost in food production in the South African country. Through this partnership, Zambia joins a growing list of African countries where Verve’s EMV compliant cards is used and accepted. This also clearly reinforces the payment brand’s market positioning as the preferred Pan‐African card in domestic and cross border transactions in and outside the continent.

    Verve has over 35 Million Cards and tokens issued across 8 African countries and growing. In addition to regional acceptance across Africa, Verve cards can also be used outside Africa as it is accepted in over 185 countries across the globe.

  • AfDB to support Nigeria’s power sector recovery program

    The African Development Bank ( AfDB ) says it will support Nigeria’s Power Sector Recovery Programme ( PSRP ) in three areas.

    It listed the areas as operational and technical intervention, governance issues and policy based support.

    The bank disclosed this in Abuja on Friday in a statement signed by Mrs Fatimah Alkali, Senior Communications Officer in Nigeria Country Office.

    AfDB said it had undertaken a mission to hold further discussions on Nigeria’s PSRP with several stakeholders.

    The bank said that the mission was led by Mr Amadou Hott, the Bank’s Vice President for Power, Energy, Climate Change and Green Growth.

    It said meetings had been held with relevant ministries, departments and agencies to harmonise plans and areas of intervention.

    The ministries and agencies include the Ministries of Finance, Power, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, the Transmission Company of Nigeria, World Bank and solar power developers.

    The Bank said the programme was designed to promote energy access to rural communities through the expansion of the transmission grid, development of innovative financing products and provision of technical assistance to improve revenue generation by the distribution companies.

    It said the goal of the mission was to identify opportunities for collaboration in the programme.

    “The bank’s energy strategy identifies energy as crucial not only for the attainment of health and education outcomes, but for industrialisation, reducing the cost of doing business and for unlocking economic potential and creating jobs.

    “In line with its high 5 development priorities, the Bank is committed to supporting Nigeria in the effective and efficient implementation of the country’s Power Sector Recovery Program,” the bank said.

    The statement quoted the Bank’s President, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, as saying that “Africa is simply tired of being in the dark.

    “It is time to take decisive action and turn around this narrative: to light up and power Africa and accelerate the pace of economic transformation, unlock the potential of businesses and drive much needed industrialisation to create jobs” he said.

    NAN

  • Food, drinks fiesta holds March 30

    THE International Food and Drinks Festival will hold from March 30 to April 1 at the Ibadan Recreation Club, Adamasigba, Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

    The Project Coordinator, Clemence Eki, said over 20,000 participants and big brands  are expected to attend the event.

    He said: “Specifically, we are putting this event together to further create value for big players and Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) in the food and drink subsector, by bringing them together under one roof of unlimited sales opportunities. More importantly, it is to create a very good ambience for fun-loving Nigerians, especially families to enjoy Easter, which stretches through the duration of the event.

    “The International Food and Drinks festival has been held all over the world to much acclaim. Ibadan, being a major city in Nigeria and with her pride of place in the nation’s history being hosts to the premier university, the first TV station, the first stadium, among others, presents us the obvious choice to host the Nigerian version. We guarantee three days of fun, great food and drinks, both local and continental.”

     

  • Expert alerts on banana diseases

    FORMER Dean, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Ilorin (UNILORIN), Prof Abiodun Adeloye, has called for increased  surveillance following reports of disease attacks on the banana sector.

    Scientists from the United Kingdom-based Centre for Agriculture and Biosciences International (CABI) said an attack on the world’s banana production could destroy about $35 billion worth of the crop.

    The experts at CABI said effects of the fungus known as Panama disease tropical race 4 (TR4), with the Banana Bunchy Top Virus (BBTV) and the Banana Skipper butterfly (Erionotaspp) could destroy banana plantations across Asia, Africa and Latin America.

    There are no cultivars resistant to these three threats. Bananas are a vital part of the diet of more than 400 million people in developing countries.

    They are grown by millions of smallholder farmers who also rely upon them for their livelihoods. In Africa, about 70 million people depend on bananas, while Latin America accounts for about 60 per  cent of global banana sales. The banana skipper is an invasive species of butterfly originally from Southeast Asia, which has been spreading throughout Asia and the Pacific.

    According to experts, heavy infestations can lead to the defoliation of banana plants. Banana Bunchy Top Virus is spreading westwards from Southeast Asia. Diseased plants rarely produce fruit and when they do, the fruit is stunted and twisted.

    Adeloye called on the government to take steps to protect the industry through good farming practices and enlightenment of farmers.

    CABI’s scientists fear that unless a concerted worldwide framework of prevention, detection and management is implemented, this lethal cocktail of fungal, viral and insect risks could combine to make containment of the attacks more complicated and less successful.

     

  • IFC invests $2m in agriculture

    International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, has signed a $2 million agreement with the Federal Government to strengthen agribusiness and create jobs.

    According to a  statement, Nigeria is one of three countries to benefit from the World Bank Group’s Livestock and Micro Reforms in Agribusiness (L-MIRA) programme, which objective is to improve competitiveness in the dairy and poultry subsectors. The others are Ethiopia and Tanzania.

    The Practice Manager for the World Bank Group’s Finance, Competitiveness, and Innovative Global Practice, Alejandro Alvarez de la Campa, said: “Dairy and poultry are important livestock sectors that contribute significantly to agribusiness, a key growth sector in Nigeria. By introducing harmonised and simplified regulations related to animal feed, drugs and vaccines, this initiative will help spur socio-economic development in the country.”

    The project will streamline the regulation of animal feed to remove overlapping or redundant regulatory requirements related to the standards and quality control mechanism, as well as the registration and renewal process for drugs and vaccines.

    It will also support reforms to better and more efficiently regulate animal feed in markets, and coordinate government agencies involved in regulating animal feed.

    The four-year deal, endorsed by key national partners, is funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The partners include the  Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) and the Nigerian Institute of Animal Science (NIAS).

    IFC, a sister organisation of the World Bank and a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. Working with more than 2,000 businesses worldwide, we use our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in the toughest areas of the world.

     

  • Exporters lament drop in produce prices

    Falling agro exports prices, despite the rise in cocoa prices, is giving stakeholders concerns. Cocoa price has continued its bullish trend, hitting more than $2,000 per tonne.

    On March 8, cocoa price was $2504 at the New York futures, while the International Cocoa Organisation (ICCO) price was $2489.36.

    Notwithstanding, the Federation of Agricultural Commodity Association (FACAN) President, Dr. Victor Iyama, said farmers were confronting falling prices of key agricultural commodities, such as ginger, because of fresh supplies from other countries.

    He said ginger price had fallen to $980 per tonne, stating that the price plunged because exports to Asia had slowed due to surplus production there. Increased output from other regions, specifically China, has also resulted to a glut of the product in the market.

    Between last year and this year, demand for ginger also endured significant ups and downs.

    He said despite increased local production, farmers might get less than they bargained for.

    A member of the Nigerian-Vietnam Business Association, Mr  Sunny Anjorin, said the price of  dried ones  coming from Nigeria had plummeted.

    Before now, prices in China reached  $3,000. It was estimated that total production in China would be about 15,000 tonnes, but now export traders re-estimated production to the tune of 20,000 -25,000 tonnes. He explained that China was investing in massive ginger production.

    According to him, China is a real threat to Nigeria as they offer the produce at the lowest price level in the global market. He complained that stored ginger was rotting due to lack of market. He explained that global producers of ginger were  harvesting.

    For example, the domestic price of ginger in Kaduna has dropped from N280,000 per tonne to N240,000.

    India is the world’s largest producer of ginger, with an estimated 799,860 tonnes from 1,53,450 hectares (ha) in 2015 and 16, according to  statistics.

    However, in terms of area, Nigeria and China are at the top. India and China contribute almost 50 per cent of world ginger production.

    Experts said the Nigeria and China gimger’s low rates in the international market were impacting the Indian ginger exports.

    With the unstable price of cashew nut in the global market, he advised Nigerians to produce more highly-processed products.

    He said the price of cashew nut exports may not remain stable. He urged the sector to focus on improving the product quality, processing technique and domestic market development.

  • Food, drinks fiesta holds March 30

    THE International Food and Drinks Festival will hold from March 30 to April 1 at the Ibadan Recreation Club, Adamasigba, Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

    The Project Coordinator, Clemence Eki, said over 20,000 participants and big brands  are expected to attend the event.

    He said: “Specifically, we are putting this event together to further create value for big players and Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) in the food and drink subsector, by bringing them together under one roof of unlimited sales opportunities. More importantly, it is to create a very good ambience for fun-loving Nigerians, especially families to enjoy Easter, which stretches through the duration of the event.

    “The International Food and Drinks festival has been held all over the world to much acclaim. Ibadan, being a major city in Nigeria and with her pride of place in the nation’s history being hosts to the premier university, the first TV station, the first stadium, among others, presents us the obvious choice to host the Nigerian version. We guarantee three days of fun, great food and drinks, both local and continental.”