President Muhammadu Buhari has urged African leaders to show
political will and recommit themselves to transforming agriculture on the
continent.
Buhari made the call on Wednesday in Senegal in his goodwill
message at the feed Africa summit of heads of state and government.
In a statement by Femi Adesina, his spokesperson, Buhari
encouraged his counterparts to adopt innovative policies that ensure people on
the continent consume what they produce and export the excess.
With rising inflation globally and the effects of the
Russia-Ukraine conflict on up food prices, Buhari listed measures that African
leaders must take to change the status quo.
‘‘Feeding Africa is
an imperative. We must ensure that we feed ourselves today, tomorrow, and well
into the future,” he said.
“The starting point is to raise agricultural productivity.
This requires the access of farmers to quality farm inputs, especially improved
seeds, and fertilizers and mechanisation.
‘‘To succeed, we must strongly support farmers. There is no
doubt that we need to subsidise our farmers, but we must do so in ways that are
transparent, remove rent-seeking behavior and effectively deliver support to
farmers.
‘‘The share of budget
allocation to agriculture should be increased across Africa, especially for
investments in critical public goods, such as research and development,
infrastructure, especially roads, irrigation, and energy.
‘‘As leaders, let us decisively ensure that we meet the 10
percent allocation of our budgets to agriculture as agreed in the Malabo
Declaration of the African Heads of State and Government.”
Buhari also called on the African leaders to reduce the rate
of rural-to-urban migration through the development of rural areas.
He also said encouraging more young people to enter the
agricultural industry and making it appealing to them would be crucial to the
future of agriculture in Africa.
‘‘To feed Africa, we
need younger male and female farmers. We must also ensure that they get access
to land, finance, technologies, information, and markets,” he said.
Buhari, therefore, requested that the food and agriculture
delivery compacts arising from the summit must address ways to improve
empowerment of the youth and women in the sector.
‘‘We must take into consideration climate change and ensure
that agricultural systems are climate-smart and climate-resilient,” he said.
‘‘We must invest heavily in irrigation to help address increasing
frequency of droughts that are leading to decline in crop yields.
‘‘I am convinced that
the very targeted and bold approach of using the food and agriculture celivery
compacts will allow Africa to finally break through and feed itself.
‘‘Feeding Africa is not negotiable. Africa must grow what
her citizens eat. As leaders, we must demonstrate political will and re-commit
ourselves to producing for the continent’s needs, including surpluses for
export.”
‘SAPZ WILL HASTEN THE SECTOR’S TRANSFORMATION’
Furthermore, the President applauded the efforts of the African Development Bank to launch Special agro-industrial processing zones (SAPZ), recounting that he had launched the scheme in Nigeria in October 2022.
He said the SAPZ, which is in the first phase, will cover
seven states in Nigeria.
‘‘These very innovative public-private partnership models
will help us to transform the agriculture sector much faster and use it to
generate wealth,” Buhari said.
‘‘They will also
allow our countries to develop integrated infrastructure around our
agricultural processes and add value to the production of crops, livestock, and
fisheries.”
Buhari also welcomed the provision of $538.05 million by the
multilateral financing institutions for the first phase of the SAPZ in Nigeria.
“I am pleased with the partnership approach used for Nigeria
by the multilateral financing institutions, with the African Development Bank
providing $210 million, the Islamic Development Bank and the International Fund
for Agricultural Development providing $310 million, and the Government of
Nigeria providing $18.05 million,” he said.
‘‘The Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones are game
changers for the structural transformation of the agricultural sector.
‘‘I therefore urge that as we develop the food and
agriculture delivery compacts from this summit, special attention should be
placed on the development of special agro-industrial processing zones.’’
‘CENTRAL BANKS MUST SET
UP SPECIAL FINANCING WIDOWS FOR FARMERS’
Meanwhile, in his call for accessible financing, President
Buhari emphasised the need for central banks to establish specific financing
windows to support smallholder and commercial farmers.
‘‘Access to affordable finance is critical for the success
of efforts to support smallholder farmers and commercial farmers. Commercial
banks do not lend much to agriculture due to the perception of high risks,” he
said.
‘‘Generally, less than 3 percent of total financing by
commercial banks in Africa go into agriculture. We must, therefore, reduce the
risks of lending faced by commercial banks. But we must go beyond commercial
lending.
‘‘Where possible and countries can afford to, the central
banks can also dedicate significant resources to complement lending from
commercial banks.
‘‘Such dedicated financing windows from the central bank
must be well monitored, to ensure that they reach the intended beneficiaries,
must be transparent and must not crowd out the commercial lending sectors, or
the private sector.”
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