Young farmers to receive N37 billion from the Nigerian government
0Young Nigerian farmers are set to receive about N37 billion from the Nigerian Government. This was disclosed by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr. Akinwumi Adesina at the YES-O Agric Extension Agents and official launching of Growth Enhancement Support (GES) Scheme Roll-Out of Agricultural Inputs (Fertilizers and Seeds) at Ilora Farm Settlement, Ilora in Afijio local government area of Oyo State. According to him, the Federal Government will release N1billion to each of the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, to boost young farmers lacking fund to pursue their vision.
Adesina gave assurance that the current administration “is out to halt the trend by aggressive and determined policies that are at variant with the past practices, part of which is the elimination of middlemen in the distribution chain of farm inputs, especially fertilizer.”
Lamenting the current state of the nation whereby Nigeria imports an immense amount of her food stuff, he lamented that the country spends an average of N365million annually on rice importation and N635billion on wheat and in his words, insisted that it was the determination of the current administration to change the status of Nigeria from being a dumping site for cheap food to that of exporting country as she used to be in the past before the discovery of oil.
