2023 : FG late inputs procurement may stall food security

* AFAN advocates monitoring 

As efforts to embark on inputs procurement for year 2023 food security by the Federal Government ( FG) commenced, an insider has complained against the late exercise that may not meet the rainy season planting by farmers.

Food Farm News finds out that the Federal Ministry  of Agriculture and Food Security ( FMAFS) has just this week commenced the procurement process of farm inputs to achieve food security for the year 2023.

And this by implications according to our insider was an indication that the exercise may not meet the rainy planting season of farmers as we are already in the month of September, adding this is another pointer to food shortage against 2024.

The insider continued that lack of funds in the ministry may have caused the delay coupled with the absence of the two Ministers who have just arrived and are trying to settle down.

He added that nothing substantial has been done this year in the ministry except those projects that are sponsored by International donors.

He said the ministry should say the truth about inputs availability to farmers saying that “ nothing is happening, the minister just opened the procurement process for the 2023 farming season this September, you see how things are going, for the whole of this year we have not done anything, we have just been sitting down idle,  if you see anything going on, it’s projects by the International donors, but projects belonging to the ministry has not commenced because there is no money on ground yet, money has not been released. Now that the procurement process has started with the arrival of the Ministers, maybe money will be released. The work is frustrating now, because you come to the office having nothing to do, and when you ask for funds, they say it’s not available. At this stage we have passed the level of telling farmers lies ”

Meanwhile, the All Farmers' Association of Nigeria ( AFAN) under the leadership of Architect Kabir Ibrahim has advocated the need for his members to join FG on how to bring the price of fertilizers down towards achieving food security declaration.

In the statement made available, the president of AFAN, Architect Ibrahim said that " to collaborate fully with the laudable emergency on food security declared by the Tinubu Administration, AFAN has decided to set up 3 committees namely: Seed Committee, Mechanization Committee  and Science Technology Innovation (STI) Committee in addition to its existing fertilizer committee already working with the FG to fashion out the best way to bring down the price of fertilizer so that the Small Holder Farmers (SHFs) will be able to scale up their productivity for the much needed food security"

The statement went further that " In Nigeria today mechanization is below average and for it to reach a desired level, certain improvisions, and sometimes innovations may have to be embraced"