The President of the African Development Bank Group, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina on Monday said that with the vast agricultural resources in Nigeria, its citizens have no business being hungry. He said this at the official launch of the Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones in Nigeria.
The AfDB Boss who
commiserated with the Federal Government on the flooding that is devastating
the country recalled how he had to deal with the worst floods in Nigeria when
he was Minister of Agriculture.
He said while floods may wash away some land and harvests, the government must not let the hopes of farmers be washed away, describing agriculture as being critical for the survival of any nation, adding that the most important role of any nation is to feed its people.
Akinwumi said, “Food is a
fundamental human right. Africa faces huge challenges in meeting its food
needs, with 283 million people that go hungry annually.
“Yet Africa has massive
agricultural potential. With 65 percent of the uncultivated arable land left
to feed over 9 billion people in the world by 2050 being in Africa, what Africa
does with agriculture will determine the future of food in the world.
“The story is no
different in Nigeria, despite positive efforts that have been made to improve
the agricultural sector. Food is now beyond the reach of many.”
According to the Global Hunger Index (2022), released just a week ago, Nigeria ranks 103rd among 121 countries facing hunger crisis in the world. “Hunger in Nigeria cannot be justified. Nigeria has the land, with 34 million hectares of arable land with rich and diverse agroecology. It has water. It has the labor. It has great sunshine.
"Nigeria must achieve zero hunger. There is no reason for anyone to go hungry in
Nigeria,” he added.
To help turn this situation
around for African countries, Adesina recalled that he prioritized agriculture
when he was first elected President of the African Development Bank in 2015.
Since then, he told the gathering that the African Development
Bank has committed $25 billion to investments in agriculture.
In the past six years,
he said the African Development Bank’s financing for agriculture has provided
over 76 million farmers with improved agricultural technologies for food
security.
Through its Technologies
for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT), he added that the Bank has also
provided 12 million farmers with improved climate-smart agricultural
technologies within three years.
He stated, “The African
Development Bank is also supporting Nigeria, through TAAT, to produce more
wheat, rice, and maize.
“This support will allow
Nigeria to cultivate by next year 900,000 hectares of rice, 250,000 hectares of
wheat, and 107,000 hectares of maize.
“If Ethiopia can do it,
Nigeria can do it. If Sudan can do it, Nigeria can do it. However, to achieve
these results, Nigeria must decisively tackle insecurity challenges that
prevent farmers from going to their farms.
“The private sector
cannot invest when there is insecurity. Food security needs national security.
The African Development Bank is strongly supporting Nigeria. We have always
done so.”
Adesina put the African
Development Bank’s portfolio in Nigeria at $4.6bn, stating that this shows the
high priority that the bank accorded to Nigeria, across several sectors.
To boost food production
in Nigeria, he noted that the bank is already investing $522m, with additional
co-financing of $420m from partners.
For the project, he said
the African Development Bank is providing $210m for the development of the
SAPZs in Nigeria.
“We are delighted with
our partnership with the Islamic Development Bank which is co-financing with
$150 million, and with the International Fund for Agricultural Development
which is co-financing with $160 million.
“The SAPZ program in
Nigeria is the largest in Africa. The commitment of the Minister of Agriculture
is strong. The commitment by the Minister of Finance is strong.
“The commitment by the
State Governors is very strong. The SAPZs in Nigeria are being developed
closely with the State Governments,” he added.
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