IITA donates 35,930 kilograms ‘Seeds of Renaissance’ to Nigeria to address humanitarian crisis

Borno, Nigeria - The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) today donated about 35,930 kilograms of seeds to the Borno state government as part of efforts to cushion the humanitarian crisis in the northeastern part of Nigeria.

Nigeria: We Have Drought Resistant Seeds for North-East - Premier Seeds

Premier Seeds Nigeria Limited, a producer of a wide range of improved certified agricultural seeds, said it has developed maize and sorghum varieties that are drought resistant.

Mr. Afolabi Samson, the company's Research and Development Manager, who spoke exclusively with our reporter, said the special varieties can do well in those areas with low rain fall.

"For the North Eastern part of the country where drought is a problem, we have maize and sorghum varieties that are drought tolerant and resistant that can do well in those areas," he said.

"For the tropical rain forest down south, where there is long term rainfall, we also have varieties that are adapted to rain forest that can do well in those areas too," he said.

Mr. Afolabi said they have a department in charge of research and development that develops all the varieties they have. He noted that they have a quality control team and quality control laboratory which tests the varieties before they are sent out.

Kano farmers celebrate return to commercial wheat production

Many farmers in Kano State are now reaping the benefits of wheat production, recording huge successes this year with the recent official launch of the harvest season by the state government.

Wheat (Alkama) production in northern Nigeria dates back to centuries in

Nigeria to export yam to China, other countries soon

(Ecofin Agency) - The Nigerian Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Audu Ogbeh, has disclosed that the Chinese government is interested in importing dry yam from the country to meet industrial and domestic demands.

The Minister, who revealed this in Abuja on Thursday, noted that although Nigeria remains one of the World’s largest producers of yam, it was still not among yam exporting countrie

University Of Agriculture Makurdi Can Champion FG’s Diversification Drive – Akande

Mr Akinloye Akande is the national president of the Federal University of Agriculture Makurdi Alumni. In this interview withTARKAA DAVID, he speaks on ongoing effort being made by the Alumni to transform the institution from a mere citadel of learning to an economic hub where the country can benefit immensely in terms of the diversification drive of the federal government.

You became the national president of UAM in October 2015 for a three-year term. How have you been coping so far in steering the affairs of this association?
Well, as it is with every other organisation, it is not easy but it has always been the grace of God because for one to really count his achievements in office, he or she will need time. There are lots of things that need to be addressed. Since the federal government can no longer meet the funding required of this institution it behoves on us to get in touch with other alumni members to help build their alma matter. For you to achieve any feat, you must be seen to have time, you must be someone who is in the forefront in meeting with other alumni members to bring something of importance. I have been making

Announcement: Call for Applications for the 2017 Short-Term Visiting Scholars Program at Michigan State University under the Feed the Future Nigeria Agricultural Policy Project

We are pleased to share with you a recently released Call for Applications for the 2017 Short-Term Visiting Scholars Program at Michigan State University under the Feed the Future Nigeria Agricultural Policy Project

Announcement: Call for Applications for the 2017 Short-Term Visiting Scholars Program at Michigan State University under the Feed the Future Nigeria Agricultural Policy Project

We are pleased to share with you a recently released Call for Applications for the 2017 Short-Term Visiting Scholars Program at Michigan State University under the Feed the Future Nigeria Agricultural Policy Project

Announcement: Call for Applications for the 2017 Short-Term Visiting Scholars Program at Michigan State University under the Feed the Future Nigeria Agricultural Policy Project

We are pleased to share with you a recently released Call for Applications for the 2017 Short-Term Visiting Scholars Program at Michigan State University under the Feed the Future Nigeria Agricultural Policy Project

Minister tasks states over Ondo millenium abattoir

Federal Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, has declared the semi-mechanised abattoir built by Governor Olusegun Mimiko, as up to the standard of World Health Organisation (WHO), just as he challenged other state governments to emulate Ondo.
In the same vein, the Council of Nigeria, and Professor of Veterinary Public Health and Provost Federal College of Animal Production and Health, Vom, Jos,

CBN directs banks, MfBs, DFIs to disburse N220b agric funds

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) yesterday appointed Deposit Money Banks (DMBs), Microfinance Banks (MfBs) and Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) to disburse N220 billion targeted at the Anchor Borrowers’ PThe apex bank also released guidelines for the implementation of ABP which it said was established in line with its developmental function.

NIHORT empowers farmers, youth on food security, waste management for wealth creation

The National Horticultural Research Institute, in fulfilling its drive to develop horticultural produce and products for local and export markets with attendant health, industrial raw materials and employment generation benefits, organised a two-day training workshop for more than 200 people in Ibadan, Oyo State, toward increased income and prosperity.

AfDB, NIRSAL partner on $300m youth agriculture project

Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL), has disclosed that the Africa Development (ADB) is investing about $300m on a project called ‘Youth Enable’ that will create a successor farmer generation to replace the ageing ones.

FG inaugurates steering committee on recapitalisation of BoA

Inaugurating the Steering Committee and Project Delivery Team on behalf of the Vice President, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, who chairs the committee, informed that the approach was to make the BoA more responsive to its mandate of serving as a veritable platform for providing loans to MSMEs, rural farmers, cooperatives and agro-allied industries, among others. 

The Minister said the approach was being preferred by the Federal Government as a pre-privatisation strategy to pave way for injection of financial and other requisite resources. He added: “It is therefore the conviction of my ministry that the approved restructuring and recapitalisation are critical to the revitalisation of the bank’s operations, as it will enable the bank serve as a strong catalyst for achieving government’s objectives.”

Minister of Agric Inaugurates Committee on National Farmers’ Day

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh has inaugurated a committee to plan and organize the first ever National Farmers’ Day celebration in Nigeria.

Inaugurating the Committee in his office on Tuesday, 10^th January, 2017, the Minister stated that the National Farmers’ Day is to showcase agricultural equipment and products in Nigeria to encourage farmers to do more and return farming/agriculture to its place of pride.

He averred that getting agriculture into the psyche of Nigerian elite was still a problem, even among those in Government. Thus, the need to attract younger people into agriculture by presenting it as an enterprise worth participating in

He stated that the National Farmers’ Day will be an annual event where each State will showcase their efforts in agriculture, with the aim of lifting the sector to where it belongs, as well as make Nigerians respect and recognize farmers as major nation builders.

Nigeria’s agric minister Ogbeh wants Nigerians to adopt safe food processing, packaging technology

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, has appealed to Nigerians to adopt safe food processing and packaging technology so as to reduce health challenges in the country.

In a statement by Dr Olukayode Oyeleye, the Special Adviser to the Minister on Media in Abuja on Monday, Ogbeh said that most food poisoning cases were caused by deficient food processing and packaging practices.

FG, AfDB to spend $175m on irrigation, markets

The Federal Government says it will spend $175 million to rehabilitate agricultural and ancillary social infrastructure in seven states under its Agricultural Transformation Support Programme Phase one.
Haruna Akwashiki, the National Coordinator of ATASP-1, disclosed the plan while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria on Tuesday in Abuja.

Making agriculture work for Nigeria

Following the alarm raised by the Minister of Agriculture, Audu Ogbeh, the Federal Government has appropriately come out with a bold plan to boost food production towards the Sustainable Development Goal of achieving food security by the year 2030. However, it is important that all the factors in the food production chain are included in the planning and implementation.

Has Boko Haram been destroyed?

The extent to which the military and the Federal Government have effectively disrupted, degraded, or destroyed Boko Haram insurgency in the North-East of the country is heavily contested. While President Muhammadu Buhari and the military high command believe vigorously that Boko Haram has been disrupted and dislodged from their base in many parts of the North, some people disagree.