12 May 2009
The World Bank and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) have provided a grant of 400 million dollars (N58 billion) for the upgrading of rural feeder roads across Nigeria.
President Umaru Yar'adua disclosed this yesterday in Abuja at the opening of the 1st All-Nigeria Rural Development Summit.
He said that out of the fund, IFAD had disbursed its share of 250 million dollars (N36.25 billion) for rural adjustment programme, while the World Bank has also disbursed its share of 150 million dollars (N21.75 billion).
The 2-day summit, organised by the Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources in collaboration with the House of Representatives Committee on Rural Development has as the theme:"Sustainable Rural Development for Vision 20-2020,"
Dr Sayyadi Ruma the Minister of Agriculture and Water Resources, represented Yar'adua, on the occasion.
The president said the five years grant, was aimed at upgrading the state of rural feeder roads across the country.
He expressed regret that the rural areas, which he described as the nation's agricultural financial base, had been neglected over the years.
The president said that to reverse the trend, the Federal Government would provide another N40 billion for small holder minimum guarantee scheme under the commercial agricultural credit scheme
"This N40 billion is representing the 20 per cent of the N200 million commercial agricultural development credit scheme, and it is meant to address the problem of access to credit by farmers," he said.
Yar'adua said government was also focusing attention in the areas of water and sanitation delivery to facilitate the development of rural areas in compliance with the MDGs and government's desire to eradicate poverty.
"Under the rural development policy framework, government will also look into irrigation, flood control and the provision of potable water" he said.
He said that since the inception of his administration in 2007, the total liability for the development of the rural sub- sector amounted to over N220 billion.
He attributed the liability of the sub- sector to a lack of proper planning and non-adherence by other tiers of government in the sharing formula for water resource development.
Yar'adua said the Federal Government had designed a new method of tackling the problems of water supply through funding of state and local governments to cater for their water supply needs.
"Government is targeting to provided over 50,000 hectares of irrigation in the next three years as against 4,000 in the last nine years and about 200 billion cubic metres of water as against 30 billion cubic in the last nine years," he said.
The president promised that his administration would not relent in its efforts to combat various challenges in the rural areas to ensure sustainable development and meet the challenges of the 21st century.
He urged the summit to work out strategies that would ensure the emergence of a "sustainable institutional and legal framework" for an effective public/private partnership to develop the rural areas.
He also urged the summit to design an effective funding arrangement that would ensure effective coordination and implementation of rural development initiatives and programmes envisaged in the 7-Point Agenda.
(NAN)
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