Melvin onwubuke
Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari has said the federal government has secured a €995 million deal between the Brazilian Government, and the German Deutsch Bank Group to finance a Green Imperative Programme in Nigeria.
This was disclosed in a statement on Monday in Minna, Niger State, according to nairametrics.
The Minister stated that as part of its implementation plan, the Programme aims to set up mechanisation centres in all 774 Local Government Areas across Nigeria.
“A memorandum of understanding between the Federal Government and the John Deer Group, a subsidiary of Tata Equipment, was signed.
“The manufacturer has signed to deliver 10,000 units of tractors and implement in tranches of 2,000 units per annum for the next five years.
“The Greener Hope Initiative is another veritable platform the federal government is deploying to ultimately change the deficit narrative in the Nigerian agricultural mechanization space,’’ he said.
At the same time, President Bola Tinubu pointed out that his administration continues to fight for food security and protection of local industries so as to sustain economic growth.
This was revealed during the Food Security and Agricultural Mechanization Programme in Niger State.
The President added that the initiative is for the deployment of cutting-edge agricultural machinery and technology for large-scale agro-value chain development in the state.
“We have seen the level of commitment here, we have seen leadership; the success of any leader will depend on the ability to do what needs to be done when it ought to be done.
“It is now time for us to address the challenges and make Nigeria an economy of opportunities. We must care for our people; and re-orient our people. I do not see why Nigeria cannot feed all students in its schools,” he noted.
Nigeria currently grapples with unprecedented food inflation which stands at 35.41% according to the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics.
Consequently, the prices of foodstuffs have risen to quadruple which has led to a food crisis and organised labour’s protests across the country against continued starvation.
Meanwhile, the UN World Food Programme has offered a donation of 25,000 tonnes of wheat from Ukraine’s Government to Nigeria which will help provide emergency food assistance for over 1.3 million people affected by famine in Nigeria.
