FGN Agricultural Transformation Agenda: How Viable?

Written by Tuesday, 13 March 2012 05:00 -

On 9 September, 2011, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development presented to the
Federal Government Economic Management Team at Abuja what he described as the
Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA). The presentation was classical, academic,
professional and with tempting projected goals. The document is complete in both content and
context. This blue print for agricultural transformation is commendable. However, there are
some grey areas that will need to be looked in to.

Preamble

About 70% of Nigerians are engaged in the agricultural sector. Agriculture contributes about
47% to the GDP while contributing less than 10% to the export earnings. Regrettably, the
poverty rate in Nigeria is so high that she occupies 133rd position in the World when it comes to
per capital income. The ATA presents a very rosy future for agriculture and its projected
contributions to the economy. Let us look at the sectorial allocation to Agriculture in 2112 and
determine if we can place so much hope on ATA. In the last 30 years, an average of 2% of the
annual budget have been allocated to Agriculture. Surprisingly, this year only 1.64% of the total
revenue was allocated to agriculture. How can we have a turn-around in agriculture with this?
Although ATA is pivoted on the private sector, I would however suggest a cautious optimism on
the part of the Hon. Minister on his anticipated performance of agriculture towards changing our
economic woes.

Planting materials

The use of genetically superior planting materials (seeds, seedlings, stems etc) for optimum
yield must be adopted if the programme must be successful. In Nigeria, there are improved
varieties of several crops but comparatively, crop yields in Nigeria are the lowest when
compared to Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Brazil. These lower yields per unit area of land
result in poor productivity and lower remuneration and tends to make agriculture less attractive.
Regrettably, 5% of the Nigerian farmers utilize improved seeds for planting. Many farmers still
hold tenaciously to their local varieties or landraces for planting. The Agricultural Transformation
Agenda (ATA) proposes the use of about 166 million cassava stems, 3,000 metric tons of
sorghum seeds, 111.0 million cocoa seedlings, 3000 metric tons of cotton seeds and 11,000
metric tons of rice seeds for planting in 2012. This appears highly over ambitious and I have my
doubts how this can be achieved. It will conservatively require a minimum of nine months to
produce cassava stems for planting. Vanguard Newspaper of 11 January, 2012 reported on
eleven seed companies procuring N30 billion loans from the banks for seed and fertilizer

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FGN Agricultural Transformation Agenda: How Viable?

Written by Tuesday, 13 March 2012 05:00 -

procurements. The names of some of the companies appear very unfamiliar in the seed
industry in Nigeria. It is necessary to advise that improved seeds to be used in this project must
have undergone regional field trials. The seed companies in their haste to deliver must avoid
the temptation of procuring seeds outside Nigeria for this Project. I also want to observe the
intention of ATA in introducing Bt cotton varieties into the programme. It is important to warn
that the use of genetically modified crops should be avoided for now. The story of Bt cotton in
India where many farmers were alleged to have committed suicide due to their inability to pay
their loans is very fresh. Secondly, we have no functional legal framework for biosafety on
GMOs in Nigeria. In addition, risk assessment facilities for GMOs are not available.

Fertilizer

The most contemptuous issue in Nigerian agriculture is fertilizer procurement and distribution.
One of the major reasons for poor crop yield in Nigeria is the lack of use of fertilizer. The
national average consumption of fertilizer is 13 kg/hectare which is even below the African
average. This abysmally low consumption rate of fertilizer is a major cause of low productivity of
Nigerian agriculture. Fertilizer use fell from a peak of 1.2 million metric tons in 1992 to a mere
56,700 metric tons in 1997. A subsidy of 25% on fertilizer has been adopted by federal
government while additional subsidies were provided by some States. The tragedy is that in
spite of these subsidies only 30% of farmers are able to procure fertilizer for use. The rest of the
farmers either purchase at uneconomical prices of N5,000 7000/bag or failed to use the
product. In a country where 70% of its citizens live below $1.0 (N165.0)/Day, how can they
afford to buy fertilizers at N5,000 per bag. In the past, government has been responsible for
procurement, distribution and sales of fertilizers but in the AFA document the private sector will
be responsible for procurement, distribution and sales of the product while Federal and State
Governments will distribute fertilizer subsidy vouchers. The voucher system being facilitated by
IFDC is said to have worked in Kano, Bauchi and Taraba states between 2009 and 2011. What
is the guarantee that this system would not degenerate into an ugly cartel saga now plaguing
fuel subsidy?

In a country that is rated 143rd on the world corruption index by the Transparency International
what is the guarantee that there would not be loopholes for fraud? We may also ask will the
estimated 70% of the Nigerian population engaged in agriculture benefit from the voucher
coupon subsidy, if no what happens to those that will not be part of the programme?

(J. E. ALIKA Ph.D, Professor of Plant Breeding and Biometry contributed this piece from
the University of Benin)

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FGN Agricultural Transformation Agenda: How Viable?

Written by Tuesday, 13 March 2012 05:00 -

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