By Gabriel Ewepu

ABUJA – THE Fertilizer Producers and Suppliers Association of Nigeria, FEPSAN, Thursday, assured farmers of availability of fertilizers ahead of the wet season farming.

Speaking during a press briefing, the President, FEPSAN, Sadiq Kassim, gave the assurance while speaking on the readiness of FEPSAN to meet the demands of farmers as the fertilizer industry is working with key partners in government by putting measures in place to ensure its hitch-free.

Kassim also said the Presidential Fertilizer Initiative, PFI, is being strengthened to make it more efficient to meet the demand of manufacturers and blenders in Nigeria.

On availability and timelines, he said 90 blenders across the country manufacture NPK while three major producers of Urea using the country’s natural gas resources, therefore, the country has adequate production capacity to meet the fertilizer needs of sub-Saharan Africa.

He also appreciated and commended the Tinubu-led administration’s for being supportive of the programme, which had voted a substantial amount of money devoted for promoting fertilizer utilization in the country.

He said: “The fundamental issue is we want to make sure that the public is aware that there would be availability of fertilizer in Nigeria, and this fertilizer would be delivered on a timely basis as and when needed by the farming public in this country.

“The reason is, one, Nigeria has grown in terms of its fertilizer capability from seven blenders to about 92 operating. Nigeria has grown from two manufacturers of Urea to three. Nigeria has grown in its ability to deliver finished fertilizers of Urea of more than 6 million metric tonnes.

“So Nigeria has actually become a net exporter of Urea. In terms of the other blends of fertilizer, we have grown from just about a million tonnes to over 12 million tonnes production capacity, and in summary, this is capable of providing soil nutrition for farmers in sub-Saharan Africa apart from those other countries of the world that import fertilizer, Urea particularly from Nigeria. So we want to assure the Nigerian public of today’s current status.

“Over the last three years, we have observed that the consumption of fertilizer in Nigeria, especially NPK fertilizer, has hovered between 650,000 to 750,000 metric tonnes. This was in the last three years.

“Today, in 2025, we are targeting to produce a million metric tonnes, and we have the necessary raw materials available in country presently in the hands of fertilizer blenders or at the port or in the ships on their way arriving in Nigeria. So we will be able to meet all the requirements.

“And we have seen historically the first batch of production or demand for fertilizer beginning from this month (April ) is actually about 600,000 metric tonnes at the most. We believe that we are capable of producing that.

“Secondly is the issue of value for money. I am not talking about pricing because pricing is a factor of raw material costs and other costs of production but I am talking about value for money because we all as an industry have pledged that any time a farmer buys a bag of fertilizer from our members, he can be rest assured that what he is buying is the right quantity, the right quality, and he will gain the value that he has paid his hard-earned money for.

“Now, farming is a science, there is always a requirement. If you use something that is garbage, of course you receive garbage. So what we are assuring the Nigerian farming public is that they will get the right quality, the right value, so that they will be able to produce the best results on the farm.

On the issue of fake fertilizer production and supplies, the FEPSAN boss allayed the fears of farmers saying that, “The fertilizer industry is a regulated industry.
This is for the fact that when you handle minerals and chemicals, you have to do it carefully, responsibly, in the right manner, because there is misuse and abuse.

“If you misuse it because of maybe poor education, knowledge, or extension service, either from our part or from the chain of distribution, there would always be a problem. So we are assuring the Nigerian public that we are up to the task, we are ready, we have always been involved in meeting these regulatory standards that have been set out by regulators. It is an industry that has its own law that guides its practice.

“There is the Nigerian law of fertilizer quality control, which was signed in 2019, and that has been in existence. And all the members have abided by that and will keep on abiding.

Meanwhile, speaking on soil health and climate adaptation he said, “Again, we are also conscious of our environment. So the issue of soil health and climate adaptation is paramount in our practices, in our activity. We are also conscious that government, as of today, has the soil health card scheme ongoing.

“Under the soil health card scheme, what we are trying to promote is the issue of the right usage of fertilizer for the right soil or for the right crop. So there would be crop-specific as well as soil-specific blends that would meet the requirement so that we don’t destroy today’s, for today’s requirement, we don’t destroy the future for our kids. So this also we are conscious of. We are also pledging to government and the farming public that we would continue to abide by these regulations.

“Finally is the issue of making sure that this system continues to move and roll out. Over the last eight years, like I said, this system has worked and has produced the results that we are all proud of. But then there should be sustainability.”

Meanwhile, in a remark, the President, All Farmers Association of Nigeria, AFAN, Arc Kabir Ibrahim, expressed optimism that with the measures put in place by FEPSAN, the farmers have hope to access quality fertilizers.

Ibrahim also said FEPSAN should ensure all who wants to join the fertilizer business, they should be registered members of the Association, and it would go a long way to curb criminality in the industry.

“FEPSAN has to be sure that it regulates who the producers are by making them members of FEPSAN first, even before giving them registration. I am an architect. You cannot practice architecture here if you are not a member of the Nigerian Institute of Architecture, the same thing should happen in FEPSAN because this is something that we consume.

“So FEPSAN should work such that these fake people who are not members of FEPSAN do not penetrate the system and void all the good work that we have been doing”, he stated.

He also pointed out that fertilizer manufacturers should be supported so they can sustain the food systems in the country, and also the farmers and FEPSAN need to synergize in order to ensure the right fertilizer is applied to a soil that accepts it.

“FEPSAN is with us in the National Farmers’ Soil Health Card. It is very important for us so that the farmer will not be producing or planting anything or cultivating anything blindly, and they are degrading the health of the soil by putting unnecessary fertilisers. When we are working all together, they know the blend that will be needed at any time, and for the crop that will be there.

“Fertilisers will not just be generic like that if we use the findings of the Soil Health Card. Our farmers should be encouraged to use fertilisers to optimise their productivity so that Nigeria will have food security”, he added.