Agricultural stakeholders have called on the President-elect, Sen. Bola Tinubu, to adopt policies and invest in mechanisation and inputs to improve the country’s food system. The farmers also recommended involving the heads of various commodity associations in policy and decision-making processes to ensure the sector’s growth and development.
The stakeholders, who congratulated the president-elect for his victory, believe that his emergence will bring much-needed development to the agricultural sector. The Chairman of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria, Dr Femi Oke, urged the president-elect to appoint only qualified experts to oversee the agricultural sector and establish the Office of the Special Adviser to the President on Food Security, which should be separate from the Federal Ministry of Agriculture.
The Chairperson of Erikorodo Poultry Farm Estate, Mrs Juliana Ibitoye, appealed to the president-elect to review the ban on maize importation, as current production levels are insufficient to meet the sector’s needs, leading to high feed costs. She also called for policies to revive the poultry sector and address shortages of soybean, sorghum, and maize.
The Chairman of the Maize Farmers Association of Nigeria, Mr Hakeem Akinsanya, called on the incoming administration to provide storage facilities and inputs for farmers, stating that farmers cannot survive without government support.
However, he advised against lifting the ban on maize importation, as it would discourage local maize farming and negatively affect the currency.
The Chairman of the Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria, Mr Raphael Hunsa, expressed confidence in the president-elect’s ability to transform the agricultural space into world standards and urged him not to surround himself with ignorant advisers.
He also recommended providing mechanised implements to rice farmers to meet the required yearly demand for rice production and attract more people to agriculture.
