AGRA has launched a Nigeria Strategic Plan 2023-2027 with the aim of strengthening resilience and competitiveness of local actors to enhance food system transformation in the country.
The Vice President, Policy and State Capability for AGRA, Dr Apollos Nwafor said the strategic plan is aimed at looking at Africa overall agenda in achieving food security and ensuring that the it achieves its overall food system transformation in the continent.
Explaining why AGRA focused on Nigeria, Dr Nwafor said Nigeria in particular has what it takes not just to feed itself but to feed Africa.
“The launch of today’s strategy is about our contribution to supporting the Nigerian agenda to achieve a food system transformation and an inclusive agricultural transformation in the country.
“We know that Nigeria has more than 50 per cent of its population who need to be food secured, so getting it right in Nigeria means we have gotten it right in Africa.
“So, the Nigerian strategy is very pivotal to other countries in Africa getting it right. Once we are able to ensure that the country is food secured and we are achieving inclusive agricultural transformation, it them means that at least 25 per cent of Africa’s population will walk away from poverty and another 25 per cent will move up the ladder to achieve economic growth for their households and also for the communities where they are.
“So, the strategy today will unveil what the key plans are, what sort of investments we plan to make and how we hope to support both government, private sector and civil societies to achieve economic growth through agricultural transformation”, he said.
He said the Strategic Plan looks at investments in ensuring that the country is driving climate smart agriculture.
“So we are going to look at having climate smart villages that will ensure that we are responding and being resilient to the fact that the impact of climate is eroding Nigeria’s arable lands.
“We are creating climate smart villages in about 5 states and we will start with Kaduna and Niger State and we hope to demonstrate that we can use climate smart technologies to grow agriculture in this country and we hope that once we are able to demonstrate that we can expand to 5 other states and work with the government to scale up those investment.
“It will need private sector engagement, it will need public sector financing, it will need that farmers who are at the centre of this, it will need the people and agriculture is not just about the farmers, it is about the financing and the youth”, he explained.
Dr Nwafor further stated that there will be other investment in policies, strategies, institutions, in market and they are going to work with SMEs to make sure that they are growing businesses to drive agricultural transformation.
Dr Kehinde Makinde, Country Manager for AGRA Nigeria said their goal is to see a resilient and competitive agricultural sector.
“So, what we are doing now as our intro point is to strengthen strengthen the resilient and competitiveness of our local actors to enhance food system transformation in the country”, Makinde noted.
Ms. Ada Osakwe, CEO of Agrolay Ventures, and representative of AGRA Board, said the launching marks a crucial step forward on a journey that holds immense potential to catalyse Nigeria’s food system development agenda and improve the livelihoods of millions of farming families across the nation.
She said the implementation of AGRA’s last strategy saw significant positive outcomes,
and building upon this success, the new strategy for the next five years is designed to go further in empowering and uplifting the agricultural sector in Nigeria by fostering innovation, investing in resilience, and ensuring equity and inclusivity.
“AGRA is committed to continuing this close engagement with the Government of Nigeria and all our other valued partners, to co-create solutions that are sustainable, and stand the test of time.
“Over the next 5 years, through our strategic interventions, our focus will be to enhance the productivity and profitability of smallholder farmers, improve market access and value chain development, promote climate-smart agriculture, and foster an enabling policy environment”, Ms Osakwe noted.
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