BOA proposes N200b for post food harvest, unveils smart transportation program

 

The Bank of Agriculture (BOA) in an effort to stabilize food prices for has hinted a plan to initiate a N200b post harvest interventions for price stabilization just as smart transportation will be initiated to ensure accessibility, availability and affordability of the agricultural produce.

BOA Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Mr. Ayo Sotinrin unveiled this during an interactive session with the Agricultural Correspondents Association of Nigeria (ACAN) in Abuja yesterday.

Sotinrin pointed that the N200b would support post harvest losses, and stabilize high prices of food while smart transportation initiative was for easy availability , accessibility and affordability of the farm produce through efficient mobility to all parts of the states.

BOA boss said that the post harvest initiative was conceived to prevent the recurrence of the  2025 wet season losses by farmers.

He stressed that the programme is neither a grant, nor subsidy, but a market driven price stabilisation mechanism meant to balance the interests of farmers, processors and consumers in general.

Under the new proposed post harvest finance, the bank CEO said that the government will purchase grains from farmers whenever market prices fall below sustainable production costs, and  the commodities will be aggregated and stored in certified warehouses before being released into the market to moderate food prices.

"This is not simply a farmer's support programme. It is a comprehensive market stabilisation strategy designed to balance the interests of producers, processors, consumers and the Nigerian economy" he said.

The Agric bank boss hinted all this effort was to migrate his organization from the conventional agricultural lender to a development finance institution focused on solving the practical challenges confronting farmers and agric businesses.

He however called on journalists to help deepen public understanding of his organization's reforms, noting that the increased awareness of agricultural financing programmes is critical to improving confidence in government interventions as he reaffirmed the bank's commitment to building a transparent, inclusive and technology driven agricultural financing system towards enhanced productivity.