By DANIEL IDONOR
ABUJA— THE National Economic Management Team, NEMT, chaired by President Goodluck Jonathan, yesterday, moved to fix the perennial challenges in the agriculture sector with an approval of an Agricultural Transformation Action Plan, ATAP, that has the capacity to generate over 3.5 million jobs, leads to injection of N410 billion (about $2.58 billion) into the economy, and enrich farmers with over N300 billion (about $2 billion) in the next four years.

The key components of the new policy which is similar to the defunct Green Revolution are the development of areas of comparative advantage, value chain and cluster farming settlements in agricultural research and development, production, processing and marketing across the country.

The presidential team has however urged Nigerians not to expect “miracles overnight” as the government would not be able to tackle all the infrastructure challenges within a short time.

The NEMT has also approved the immediate removal of subsidy on fertilizer to farmers insisting that the impact of the wasteful gesture has not been felt by the targeted farmers, but noted that the removal would not lead to high cost of the commodity.

The Minister of Finance and coordinator of the economy, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the Minister of Agriculture, Dr Akinwunmi Adeshina, Governor Murtala Nyako of Adamawa State and the President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote who briefed State House Correspondents after the meeting of NEMT, announced that the policy implementation is to be based on the principles of public-private partnership, investment, accountability among others.

Adesina disclosed that under the roadmap, the government intends to create a minimum of 3.5 jobs for Nigerian youths within five value chain of crops including rice, cassava, sorghum, cocoa and cotton; while the government also plan to achieve food security through increase production of key food staples by 20 million metric tons, before the end of 2015.

“We have just had a three hour very fruitful meeting with Mr. President, this is the second in the series of meetings if the economic management team. Today we spent a considerable amount of time going specifically into the Agricultural Sector with the state present and also farmers association present, to help us think through what it is we are not really doing in the past and what do we need to do now that can transform the agricultural sector”, he said.

From right, Coordinator of the Team and Finance Minister, Mrs. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, Gov. Peter Obi of Anambra State, Former Managing Director of Zenith Bank, Mr. Jim Ovia and Chairman, Dangote Group of Companies, Alhaji Alinko Dangote during the team’s meeting. Photos--state House.

Within this period, he stressed that the policy is expected to increase rice production by 2 million metric tons, cassava by 17 million metric tons and sorghum by 1 million metric tons; and when fully implemented, the roadmap could generate additional income of N300 billion for local farmers.

Besides, he said, over N350 billion would be injected into the economy from rice self sufficiency alone, while another N60 billion would also be injected into the economy from substituting 20 per cent of bread wheat flour with cassava flour.

The Minister stated that the government projection is that rice production which currently stands at 3.4 million metric tons would be scaled up to 7.4 million metric tons by 2015, while cassava is to rise from 34 million metric tons to 51 million metric tons, sorghum from 9.3 to 11.3 million metric tons, cocoa beans from 250, 000 to 500, 000 metric tons, cotton lint from 20,000 to 140,000 metric tons and fertilizer supply is to be increased from 550,000 to 20 million metric tons.

According to him, rice, cassava, sorghum, coca, cotton production, as key agricultural crops that the country has comparative advantages and stressed that the Federal Government will focus attention in these areas to ensure food security for the country.

“we intend to use four key principles in executing. First is a principle we call subsidiarity. We are not going to sit in the ministry of Agriculture and tell states what to do. We are going to start with the state to identify the cultural value chain whether it is sorghum, cassava, or yam, whatever it is that they want to play in. we will work with them from the bottom up so that way everybody knows what they are accountable for. Secondly is we are going to work within a framework of partnerships. Partnerships by the private sector, civil society and particularly with farmers. Third is that we are going to focus on investments, because investment must generate a return. If an investment is not

generating return you must know. So that is the discipline we are bringing into the sector now for agriculture as a business. We are going to monitor all the monies and things we are doing as projects and investment. Finally is accountability. We are going to produce an agricultural scorecard in which we are going to look at the progress we are making and not just the federal ministry of agriculture but a lot of ministries that are critical to making that sector work”, he said.

The agriculture transformation programme, the minister stated will “enable Nigeria to be food secure by increasing production of key food staples by 20 million metric tons”.

He estimated that “over N300 billion ($2 billion) in additional income in the hands of Nigerians farmers, over N350 billion ($2.2 billion) injected into the economy from rice self-sufficiency and over N60 billion ($380 million) injected into the economy from substituting 20 per cent of bread flour with cassava flour)”.

Using high-level key performance indicators, he said government intends to move the production of paddy high quality processed rice from 3.4 million metric tons presently to 7.4 million metric tons by 2015 with one million additional jobs in that sector.

The minister said under the ATAP arrangement, cassava tuber production is expected to increase from 34 million metric tons (12.5 metric tons/Ha) to 51 million metric tons (25 metric tons/Ha) with 1. 2million additional jobs by 2015 while sorghum production is expected to rise from 9.3 million metric tons and a yield of 0.75 metric ton/Ha to 11.3 million metric tons and a yield of 2.5 metric tons/Ha with 150,000 jobs created.

Explaining policy further, Adesina said cocoa beans production is projected to increase from 250,000 metric tons with a yield of 300 kilogramme/Ha to 500,000 metric tons with 500 kilogrammes/Ha with a job target of 360,000 by the same 2015.

In the cotton lint sub-sector, the agriculture ministry aims to achieve a record increase of 140,000 metric tons with 400 kilogrammes/Ha yield and a job projection level of 125,000 from it present dismal production level of 20,000 metric tons and a 150 kilogramme yield.

He added that government would hands off the sales of fertilizers to enable the product get to the farmers in record time and at over 95 per cent reach (20 million) from its present dismal 11 per cent (550,000) reach.

Okonjo-Iweala emphasised that the aim of government is to hands off subsidies on fertilizers stressing that “the policy is aimed at getting fertilizers to the farmers at 95 per cent as against the 11 per cent today”.

Asked if the policy can be achieved without the needed infrastructure, she said that government cannot wait for all the infrastructure to be completed first before designing the transformation programme adding that attention would be focused on key infrastructure.

The Finance Minister cited example with roads infrastructure in the country, saying that government will pay attention to major road arteries that would be economically beneficial to the Nigerian people.

Dangote and Nyako both stressed the importance of the implementation strategy of the ATAP saying that president was determined to ensure that the action plan produces results that will transformation the agricultural sector for the overall benefits of Nigerians.