The President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (ret.d), has stated that over 13 million direct and indirect employment have been created in Nigeria in the past seven and a half years, thanks to Nigeria’s agricultural revolution.
The President revealed this in Washington DC, USA, at an interactive session titled “A chat with President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria,” according to a statement from the president’s spokesman, Malam Garba Shehu on Saturday.
The International Republican Institute, the National Endowment for Democracy, and the International Foundation for Electoral Systems co-hosted the event with the United States Institute of Peace and the International Republican Institute.
The Nigerian leader took advantage of the opportunity to urge western nations once more to be patient in their efforts to preserve a stable climate by not rushing to completely eliminate the use of fossil fuels.
He maintained that despite a bleak picture for the world economy and the conflict in Ukraine, Nigeria’s economy has grown positively during the past two quarters.
He declared to the world that “Nigeria is nonetheless winning the fight on terrorism” notwithstanding the cavalier acts and attitudes of some friends and allies.
Buhari also urged the world media to be more impartial in its coverage of Nigeria and warned western countries against the hasty issuance of travel recommendations on the country.
Buhari continued by saying that the nation had made tremendous strides in addressing the dangers to the safety and existence of both Nigeria and the subregion.
The president of Nigeria further urged the United States to take additional steps to enhance the level of governance in the West African Sub-region.
He added that following the democratic setbacks seen in Mali, Guinea, and Burkina Faso, the survival of democracy is now under threat.
According to him, the Central Bank of Nigeria’s targeted agricultural interventions helped Nigeria shift from being a net importer of rice, the country’s primary crop, to being self-sufficient in its production.
‘‘This same scheme had financed the establishment and operations of over 50 integrated rice mills.
‘‘It had also financed over 4.5million smallholder farmers, ensured the cultivation of almost 6million hectares of farm land and almost 700 large-scale agricultural projects had been funded.
‘‘This agricultural revolution had led to the creation of over 13m direct and indirect jobs,’’ he said.
