25 November 2008
Lagos — Vice-President, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, yesterday announced that government was planning to establish a competitive rice research grant to boost the production of the staple food.
Jonathan stated this yesterday in Abuja at the opening of NEPAD Business Group/Nigeria Economic Summit Group (NESG) sub-regional rice investment forum.
He added that rice farmers would be empowered and organised to access credit facilities, while government would provide the needed infrastructure.
He was represented by Mr Ademola Seriki, the Minister of State for Agriculture and supervising Minister of Solid Minerals Development.
Jonathan stated that the N10 billion Rice Fund -- established by government -- was expected to generate additional 1.1 million metric tonnes of rice.
He called on the private sector to collaborate in the areas of accessing credit facilities and the building of rice processing factories. Special Adviser to the President and Head of NEPAD, Nigeria, Amb.Tunji Olagunju said the greatest challenge was in access to rural infrastructure, technology, markets and funds to boost production.
"There is, therefore, the need for a better coordination and collaboration of efforts towards effective and efficient value-chain in rice production.
"Today, one can proudly announce that the new rice for Africa, NERICA - has been tested and found to be ideal to our climatic conditions."
"We should take full advantage of this species in order to ensureself-sufficiency in rice production and indeed become net exporter of rice,"he added. Olagunju stated that the proposed Strategy for Wealth Creation and Retention had identified rice as an important enterprise in its scheme and therefore appealed for higher productivity.
He then urged governments in the West African sub-region to pursue the 2003 Maputo Declaration, which asked African Union to dedicate at least 10 per cent of their national budgets to agriculture.
In a goodwill message, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Dimeji Bankole, noted that food security was central to the attainment of the ideals of sustainable human development and the MDGs.
Bankole said the House recognized the need to spearhead the move to end the spectre of hunger in Nigeria by ensuring higher appropriation to the agricultural sector.
Allocations to the sector had hovered an average of seven per cent of the national budget for many years, he said.
"We will expedite action in the consideration of outstanding and expectedBills that impact on Nigeria?s agricultural sector."We are prepared to appraise the 1978 Land Use Decree with a view to amendingits provisions."We will reform the Act to enhance its capacity to stimulate agriculturalproduction for commercial and domestic purposes," he stressed.
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