The Federal Government has unveiled new agricultural reforms aimed at ending hunger, boosting food production, and reducing post-harvest losses estimated at over $10bn annually, in line with President Bola Tinubu?s Renewed Hope Agenda for food security and national prosperity.

The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, and the Minister of State, Senator Sabi Abdullahi, announced this through a signed statement on Thursday.

Kyari said agriculture remained the backbone of Nigeria?s economy and the key to national renewal. ?Agriculture remains the single largest employer of labour in Nigeria and contributes more than one-quarter of our Gross Domestic Product. Yet beyond these figures lies a deeper truth: agriculture is the measure of our nation?s resilience and the foundation of our collective renewal,? he said.

He explained that the government?s ongoing reforms were designed to ?end hunger, ensure food sufficiency and drastically reduce post-harvest losses draining the nation?s agricultural value chain.?

?Together, these tiers will form a connected post-harvest system aimed at cutting losses valued at over $10bn annually, while improving food quality, farmer incomes, and price stability nationwide,? Kyari added.

The minister further stated, ?As we deepen mechanisation, expand irrigation, and strengthen our storage systems, we are laying the foundation to end hunger and make food abundance a reality for every Nigerian household.?

He reaffirmed President Tinubu?s directive to modernise Nigeria?s agricultural production. ?Mr President?s charge remains clear: ?Our farmers must transition from hoes and cutlasses to tractors and harvesters. Food sufficiency is the first currency of national stability,? he said.

Kyari disclosed that the government was already implementing key policies and programmes to support this transition, including the National Agricultural Growth Scheme?Agro-Pocket, the Renewed Hope Agricultural Mechanisation Programme, and the Nigeria Postharvest Systems Transformation Programme.

?Just last month, in October, a new milestone was achieved with the introduction of rainfed wheat cultivation in Kuru, Plateau State, an innovation by the Lake Chad Research Institute that extends wheat farming beyond irrigated zones,? Kyari said.

?With rainfed varieties now proven viable across the highlands of Plateau, Taraba, and Cross River states, Nigeria is charting a new course toward all-year farming and self-sufficiency in wheat production.?

On post-harvest management, the minister described the NiPHaST programme as a legacy project designed to reduce food losses, improve quality, and stabilise prices.

?NiPHaST is designed to strengthen post-harvest handling and storage systems from the community level upwards, creating an integrated network that connects farmers, cooperatives, and strategic reserves across the country,? he said.

He also announced that operations at the National Strategic Grain Reserve Silos in Zamfara, Katsina, Nasarawa, Adamawa, Niger, Osun, Edo, and Kwara states were being enhanced to support emergency interventions and price stabilisation.

On financing reforms, Kyari said President Tinubu had approved the recapitalisation of the Bank of Agriculture with N1.5tn, alongside a N250bn financing window for smallholder farmers.

?The Bank of Agriculture, in partnership with Heifer Nigeria, has launched the Renewed Hope National Agricultural Mechanisation Programme, a transformative tractor financing and management initiative designed to expand affordable access to mechanisation services nationwide,? he said.

?Through this programme, mechanisation will become a national service that modernises production, raises yields, and creates sustainable rural employment,? Kyari stated.

He confirmed that the National Agricultural Development Fund was now fully operational as a vehicle to expand agribusiness financing, complementing the role of the Bank of Agriculture.

Kyari added that the administration was investing in rural infrastructure such as feeder roads, mini-dams, solar-powered boreholes, and market access facilities to strengthen rural livelihoods.

Abdullahi, also speaking, said the government?s drive toward food self-sufficiency would be anchored on climate-smart and inclusive agricultural reforms.

?Today, we are all gathered here to propose actions that will strengthen our national solidarity in the fight to end hunger, malnutrition, and poverty, and to highlight the need for food security and nutritious diets, which is in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu?s Renewed Hope Agenda,? he said.

Abdullahi added that achieving food self-sufficiency would require optimising the production of major crops such as maize, wheat, sorghum, millet, soybean, cassava, yam, and cowpeas.

?For us to reach food self-sufficiency or improve our current food self-sufficiency levels, we need to attain all potential crop production levels for our major food security crops,? he said.

He noted that the Federal Government was prioritising climate-smart agriculture through ?the development of new climate-resilient crops that are tolerant and adapted to biotic and abiotic stresses? and ?the development of integrated soil-crop system management and integrated disease and pest management with existing crop varieties.?

Abdullahi also listed other key initiatives, including the Dry Season Initiative for 500,000 hectares of all-year farming, the Every Home a Garden Initiative by the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, and the Nigerian Farmers? Soil Health Scheme, which offers crop and location-specific fertiliser recommendations.

?Our broader goals are targeted at reducing import dependence, strengthening market confidence, and reviving agribusiness to position Nigeria as a leading food supplier in West Africa,? he said.

Recall that the Federal Government has made several efforts to end hunger through targeted agricultural reforms by converting idle institutional lands into food production hubs and declaring a state of emergency on food security.

Mechanisation and irrigation projects are also being expanded nationwide to boost productivity.

For decades, agriculture has remained the backbone of the economy, employing millions and sustaining rural communities. Yet, persistent challenges such as low mechanisation, poor infrastructure, and post-harvest losses have prevented the country from realising its full potential. (PUNCH)

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