As Nigerians groan from the ballooning cost of food items across the country, The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Sen. Abubakar Kyari, has estimated that the country needs about 312,000 metric tons of seed in 2024 to achieve objectives in food security, food sufficiency, and global stability.
It would be recalled that Nigeria currently faces a severe food crisis with food inflation pegged at 40.01% according to the latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
Earlier, the World Bank had projected that seven states in Northern Nigeria will experience severe hunger in 2024.
Reacting to all these at a High-Level Stakeholders’ Forum on Seed System Development in Abuja, organized by Feed-the-Future Nigeria Integrated Agriculture Activity, Sen. Kyari reeled out measures on how the country can achieve sufficiency.
Representing the minister, Dr. Haruna Suleman, Director of the National Food and Strategic Reserve, attended the forum
He disclosed that the ministry has identified various critical methods to address Nigeria’s food security issues.
He outlined these methods as strategies to be implemented over short, medium, and long terms within four years, aiming initially to produce 31 million metric tons of grain in 2024.
Kyari emphasized the importance of addressing seed availability, affordability, and adaptability to ensure the success of these food security measures.
He said, “Major crops that are most concerned are rice, maize, wheat, sorghum and cowpea in 2024.”
“We require about 312,000 metric tons of seed which is to enable us to achieve the required metric tons.”
The minister announced that the Federal Government has initiated programs to assist farmers by providing them with high-quality seeds for rice, wheat, maize, cassava, and other essential inputs at subsidized rates.
He emphasized that the development of the Nigerian seed sector requires collaboration and partnership among all major stakeholders, aimed at creating a model of cooperation based on knowledge sharing, skill exchange, expertise, competitive advantage, and mutual benefits.
