Export competitiveness a drive for agricultural growth

Export competitiveness is a drive to promote agricultural growth in the country which would help accelerate the development of the agricultural sector. Diversifying the Nigerian economy away from oil would require paying more attention to the making of agriculture and value-adding manufacturing export more competitive. Agricultural products constitute the bulk of Nigeria’s non-oil exports. The shares…

Firm Plans To Revolutionise Agriculture In Plateau

The Alfa Life Fertilisers International Limited has announced plans to revolutionise farming in the country.

The company’s chief strategy communication officer, Unwana Sunday, disclosed this while addressing extension workers of the Plateau Agricultural Development Project PADP in Jos.

He said the company intends to achieve this through strategic distribution of chemical-free and environmental friendly organic liquid fertilizers and other allied product specially formulated to protect the soils, reduce storage cost and richly transform farming while boosting crops yield by 200 per cent.

Women Serve As Foundation Of Agricultural Production In Nigeria

The Nigeria’s Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Sunny Echono, said women are the foundation of agricultural production, processing, marketing and utilisation in the country, Footprint to Africa reports.
Echono who was represented by the ministry’s Deputy Director, Extension, Dele Onorunfemi made this remark at the recent launch of African women in agriculture report titled: “Economic empowerment of African women through equitable participation in agricultural value chains’’ in Abuja.

Govt sets 26m tonne wheat production target for 2015-16

ISLAMABAD: The government on Wednesday fixed wheat production target of 26 million tonnes for 2015-16, the same target as last year because surplus wheat stocks and difficulties in its exports due to lower prices at international market.

Abdulsalami, Ogbeh, Otudeko, Adamu for Daily Trust Agric confab

The former Head of State and Chairman, Maizube Farms, General Abdulsalami Abubakar ( rtd), Honourable Minister in-waiting, Chief Audu Ogbeh, Chairman, Honeywell Group, Dr Oba Otudeko and Chairman, Nagari Dairy Integrated Farm and former Nasarawa State Governor, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, have all confirmed to be among the special guests that will attend the 1st Daily Trust Agric Conference and Exhibition in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural  Development.

U.S. Wheat Exports Plunge; Foreign Production Expands

According to today’s Wheat Outlook Report from USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS), U.S. wheat exports are down 50 million bushels, making a new record low of 850 million bushels, the lowest since 1971. This is due to the slow pace of sales and relatively high prices for domestic wheat, along with increased production from competing nations. 

Ending stocks for 2015/16 are lowered 14 million bushels, as an 84 million-bushel production decline is more than offset by a decline in total use. Feed and residual use is lowered 20 million bushels after the September 30 Grain Stocks report indicated lower-than-expected June-August disappearance. 

20 Nigerian women win International award on agriculture

Twenty Nigerian women out of 70 have emerged winners of the 2015 African Women in Agriculture Research and Development, AWARD.

A total of 1,109 applicants applied to participate in the two-year career-development program for top women agricultural scientists.

Eleven countries where considered in the award with Nigeria leading with 20 winners, Kenya with 11 and Uganda with eight amongst others.

How policies can drive agro-based economy

Until the early 70s, agriculture was the mainstay of the nation’s economy, accounting for 80 per cent of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and its major export income earnings before losing its place to oil. This is largely on account of the easy access to cash that oil provides.

Agriculture experts said in reinventing agriculture in an oil-economy, such as Nigeria’s, the solution does not necessarily lie in commercial or large-scale agriculture. This view contradicts the enduring myth that extensive farming is always more productive than small-scale agriculture, which continues to guide agricultural policy in quite a number of developing countries.

Nigerian cashew farmers announce huge 2015 profit

Some cashew farmers on Sunday said they recorded huge sales and made profits from cashew nuts during the 2015 cashew season.

The National Cashew Association of Nigeria, NCAN, told the News Agency of Nigeria on Sunday in Lagos that the current global market trends showed an increase in demand for cashew.

The association’s spokesperson, Sotonye Anga, said that this was due to Good Agricultural Practice and improvement introduced to farmers in 2014.

“We are glad to witness the prosperity of cashew farmers in Nigeria. It goes a great deal to show that NCAN is working and in collaboration with government and our development partners.

Nigeria cashew growers sign N1 billion export deal

The National Cashew Association of Nigeria said on Wednesday that it had signed a N1 billion deal with shipping companies in Nigeria to export cashew nuts.

The national spokesperson of the association, Sotonye Anga, disclosed this in an interview in Lagos.

He explained that the deal was sealed at a meeting with cashew exporters, shipping companies and forwarding agents.

He said cashew exporters will export 6,700 containers of cashew nuts to Vietnam, India and other Asian countries this year.

Nigeria gains N777bn from agric projects – Minister

Nigeria has gained N777 billion from different projects carried out in the agricultural sector, the Minister of Agriculture, Akinwunmi Adesina, said on Thursday at the 2015 budget defence organized by the Senate Committee on Agriculture.

Mr. Adesina also said that five million farmers will be given crop insurance to boost their wealth and self-esteem because farming is underrated.

Nigeria rice millers criticise Custom’s decision to allow rice importation

The National Rice Millers Association of Nigeria, NRMAN, said on Thursday in Abuja that the Nigerian Customs Service, NCS, erred in its decision to lift the ban on importation of rice through the land borders.

The Chairman of the association, Mohammed Abubakar, said the NCS overreached its statutory mandate as an enforcement agency in taking such a policy decision.

Gov Okowa Wants Financial Institutions To Finance Agriculture

Gov. Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta, has stressed the need for financial institutions in the country to rise up to the challenge of agriculture financing in order to achieve economic diversification.

The governor made the call on Wednesday in Asaba at the inauguration of Production and Processing Support Programme (PPSP) under the job and wealth creation scheme of the government.

He explained that if Nigeria would achieve its economic diversification drive, the financial institutions must be ready to finance the agriculture sector.

Okowa also called on Nigerian banks to come up with `robust credit policies’ for agriculture to address credit turn around, recruitment and training of specialist bankers, who would understand the dynamics of agriculture and agribusiness.

He said that despite the fact that agriculture plays crucial role in driving economic development, inadequate funding had continued to be a recurring decimal.

“From available statistics, the bulk of our small-scale farmers regrettably do not have access to credit finance and are, therefore, unable to invest in basic farming inputs such as implements, seedlings and fertilisers.

“As a result, farm yields have remained abysmally low, leading to widespread poverty and stunted economic growth,’’ Okowa said.

To restore agriculture to its pride of place in the Nigerian economy, the governor submitted that the issue agriculture financing must be addressed.

He expressed confidence that the state would transform its agriculture sector and stimulate development in all sectors through the production and processing support programme.

Okowa explained that PPSP was conceived to help the state overcome the problem of resource scarcity, poor technology and infrastructure deficits.

In his remark, Prof. Eric Eboh, Job Creation Officer, said that PPSP was aimed at increasing productivity and income, create jobs and wealth and ensure prosperity for the people.

Nigeria promise to improve wheat as Canadian Crops Hurt by Drought

Drought hurt crop production for Canadian wheat and canola this year, according to Statistics Canada’s latest Production of Principal Field Crops report released Friday, Oct. 2. However, declines were expected, and average yields for both crops should improve in the next report, scheduled for December.

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“The survey was taken the first week of September, and this was only the second report of the year,” said weather and crop specialist Bruce Burnett, Canadian Wheat Board Market Research Services.

For wheat, despite lower output than a year ago, production was higher than trade expectations.

Total Canadian wheat production is expected to fall 11.4% from previous-year levels to 26.1 million metric tons due to a 12.4% decrease in average yield, from 46.1 bu. per acre last year to 40.4 bu. per acre in 2015.

Spring wheat took the brunt of the production declines, down 1 million metric tons from last year on substantially lower yields. The expected spring wheat yield is 41.4 bu. per acre, or 9.6% lower than last year’s 45.8 bu.

“After being higher than normal for the past couple of years, spring wheat yields in western Canada are returning to more typical levels,” said Burnett.

Durum yields declined even more. At 30.9 bushels per acre, this year’s average durum wheat yield is expected to drop 24.5% to 30.9 bu. per acre.

Drought’s Impact Lingers

“We are still seeing impacts from drought,” said Burnett.

The brunt of the damage occurred in Saskatchewan, where farmers anticipate wheat production to fall 15.3% to 12 million metric tons on an average expected yield of 34.5 bu.  per acre, down from 40.5 bu.  last year.

Canadian canola production is expected to decline 12.9% from 2014 to 14.3 million metric tons due to an expected 8.3% decline in the average yield to 32.2 bu.  per acre.

Canadian farmers reported that soybean production could fall 2% to 5.9 million metric tons this year, following seven consecutive years of record-high production. The decrease in production is due to a projected 2.3% decline in harvested area.

Boost in Barley Production

However, not all of the production news is bleak for Canadian farmers, who will produce 12.2 million metric tons of corn for grain, 6.2% more than last.

Nigeria: How Technology Can Manage Country's Food Shortage

Import bill for food in Nigeria is becoming alarming. At 11 percent per annum, it is growing in geometric acceleration that seems very difficult to sustain. Most unfortunate is that Nigeria is importing what it can produce in abundance, thereby hurting Nigerian farmers and displacing local production.

Nigeria: Buhari's Ministers - Who Gets What

Abuja — Following the release of 21 names of ministerial nominees sent by President Muhammadu Buhari to Senate President Bukola Saraki last week, Nigerians would still have to wait for at least another two weeks for the Senate to conclude its screening and for Buhari to announce the portfolios they will be assigned.

On the list read by Saraki during plenary yesterday were Abubakar Malami (SAN) (Kebbi), Lt.-Gen. Abdurahman Bello Dambazzau (rtd) (Kano), Senator Aisha Jumai Alhassan (Taraba), Alhaji Lai Mohammed (Kwara), Babatunde Raji Fashola (Lagos), Adebayo Shittu (Oyo), Solomon Dalong (Plateau), Senator Chris Ngige (Anambra), Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers) and Chief Audu Ogbeh (Benue).

Budget 2016: Buhari Promises To Diversify Nigeria’s Economy

President Muhammadu Buhari has said his administration would enact new policies to diversify Nigeria’s economy from oil to other sectors such as agriculture, mining and manufacturing. This, he said, will be captured in the 2016 national budget.

Speaking at a meeting with a delegation of French investors under the aegis of Movement of the Enterprises of France (MEDEF), led by its President, Mr. Pierre Gattaz, in Abuja, yesterday, President Buhari said the policies currently being evolved by his administration would boost domestic manufacturing and attract greater investment to Nigeria’s agricultural and mining sectors.

Nigeria: FG to empower 30, 000 youths through agriculture programme

WorldStage Newsonline-- The Federal Government of Nigeria has commenced the empowerment of 30, 000 youths through its Youth Employment in Agriculture Programme (YEAP), according to the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Sonny Echono.

According to a statement, Echono said the Programme  endorsed by the ministry’s Director of Information, Mr. Tony Ohaeri in Abuja would cut across the various value chains, which include rice, maize, tomatoes and others.

Mr. Echono stated that the ministry received about 34,000 applications from intending Nagropreneurs and Market Oriented Producers from 12 participating states including the FCT.

He said that a total of 250 Nagropreneurs would be selected per state including the FCT under the first phase of the programme.