Sunday, November 24

Tag: Agriculture

Nigerian Farmers to Get $1.1 Billion Loan Intervention from CBN
19Jun By Obiajulu Joel NwoluNo Comments
Agriculture, Covid-19, Economy, Finance, Nigeria

Nigerian Farmers to Get $1.1 Billion Loan Intervention from CBN

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said it plans to empower farmers with N432 billion ($1.1 billion) intervention loan to upscale food production during the planting season. The apex bank said through its Twitter handle on Thursday that about one million farmers will be given loan to cultivate more than one million hectares of land to ensure adequate food supply as the economic effects of covid-19 unravels. The West African nation has been pushing for more investment in the agricultural sector as a drift from reliance on crude, which accounts for estimated 90% of the countries revenues. The CBN projects increased production of cash crops such as cotton, rice, tomato, cassava, cocoa and maize for self-reliance cum revenue generation through export.  
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Famine Strikes in Burkina Faso as Farmers Seek Help
17Jun By Obiajulu Joel NwoluNo Comments
Agriculture, Burkina Faso, Economy

Famine Strikes in Burkina Faso as Farmers Seek Help

Burkina Faso has been struck by drought and desertification which has resulted in famine. The landlocked West African nation of Burkina Faso has been hard hit by drought and desertification. The AFP and Africanews report that the landlocked nation has been hit hard by draught which has caused large scale hunger among its citizens.  Just east of capital Ouagadougou, once fertile land is now dry. The country which is famed for food production and fertile earth has turned a shadow of itself. Previously productive lands are now good for gathering pebbles, due to years of drought and the erosion of the top soil. The slow advance of desertification, comes as populations from the north and across the Sahel are being pushed from their homes by violence linked to jihadists. Food inse...
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Nigeria Secures $288.5m African Development Bank Loan
8Jun By Obiajulu Joel NwoluNo Comments
Africa, Agriculture, Covid-19, Economy, Finance, News, Nigeria

Nigeria Secures $288.5m African Development Bank Loan

Nigerian has gotten approval for $288.5m loan from African Development Bank (AfDB) to cushion the impact of coronavirus and the drop in the price of crude oil. Africa’s largest economy – Nigeria, has been battling with growing cases of COVID-19 with an infection rate of 12,233 cases and 342 deaths. Coupled with the dwindling price of oil, the country has seen her finances stretched. The minister of finance, Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed had warned that Nigeria’s economy could take a hit from the pandemic. The country has been battling with the adverse effect of the pandemic, low oil price and effect of lockdown which held sway till recent relaxation. Read also: FG lost N557bn to MDAs in five years —Report The loan will reinforce government’s capacity to upscale surveillance and react t...
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Lagos inaugurates FADAMA Food Market in Badagry
21Feb By Debo OmilaniNo Comments
Agriculture, Economy, Lagos News, Nigeria

Lagos inaugurates FADAMA Food Market in Badagry

Lagos State Government today inaugurated a new Food Market at Agbalata, in Badagry Local Government in order to structure agricultural produce marketing for traceability and quality assurance.   The Special Adviser to the Governor on Agriculture, Ms. Abisola Olusanya, who inaugurated the market, explained that the new FADAMA Food Market would also promote availability of wholesome food to the populace at affordable prices as well as create farmgate price advantage through the elimination of middlemen.   She noted that the market which was a product of a collaborative effort with multilateral Agencies, especially the World Bank and the Federal Government, would also reduce post-harvest losses whilst giving optimum returns to farmers for their efforts.   Acco...
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Lagos to give Agric Estates, Farm Settlements Facelift – Sanwo-Olu
13Feb By Debo OmilaniNo Comments
Agriculture, Economy, Lagos News, News, Nigeria

Lagos to give Agric Estates, Farm Settlements Facelift – Sanwo-Olu

Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu has reiterated the commitment of the State Government towards changing the face of the various agricultural estates and farm settlements in the State in order to boost production and encourage youth participation in agriculture.   Sanwo-Olu, who disclosed this on Thursday at the maiden edition of the Ecobank Agribusiness Summit held in Lagos, noted that efforts have already started towards achieving this goal through the recently concluded appraisal of the current state of the estates.   He reiterated that the State Government is focussed on enhancing its competitive and comparative advantage in agricultural value chains towards the attainment of self-sufficiency in food production and moving from the current 18% to 40% by 2025...
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Osun Gov Seeks Private Partnership to Revamp Agric Sector
19Aug By Debo OmilaniNo Comments
Agriculture, Lagos News, News, Nigeria

Osun Gov Seeks Private Partnership to Revamp Agric Sector

Osun State Governor, Adegboyega Oyetola, has reaffirmed the government’s commitment to partner private sector to revive the agriculture sector in the state. He said on Monday during a facility tour of Bob Jones Farm Limited, at Obadimu community, Orolu Local Government Area of the state. While speaking, he said his administration will do everything possible to make agriculture the mainstay and bedrock of the state's economy. Oyetola who described agriculture as the most sustainable means to growing the economy, said no stone will be left unturned to turn around the sector for the betterment of the people of the state. He said the administration's revolution has been designed to make the state sufficient in food production, and by extension have enough to export, explaining that...
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Kwara State to Partner AfDB on Infrastructure Devt., Women Empowerment
31Jul By Debo OmilaniNo Comments
Agriculture, Economy, Employment, News, Nigeria

Kwara State to Partner AfDB on Infrastructure Devt., Women Empowerment

Kwara State Government has opened talks with the African Development Bank (AfDB) on various areas of partnership, including road construction, small and medium scale enterprises with focus on women empowerment, energy, and agro-processing. This contained in a statement on Wednesday by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Rafiu Ajakaye. According to the statement, the proposed partnership is the outcome of a meeting Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq held with the AfDB team in Abuja on Monday during which he spelt out the priorities of his new administration and sought the buy-in of the development body. Governor AbdulRazaq at the meeting identified the priority areas to include education, healthcare, infrastructure, agriculture, women and youth empowerment, and entrepreneurship...
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Opinion Buhari’s Ruga Insult By Lasisi Olagunju
2Jul By adminNo Comments
Agriculture, Fulani Herdsmen, News, Nigeria

Opinion Buhari’s Ruga Insult By Lasisi Olagunju

On October 18, 1990, the United States, in a National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), predicted the end of a country which was behaving almost as Nigeria is behaving now. It said, “Yugoslavia will cease to function as a federal state within a year, and will probably dissolve within two. Economic reform will not stave off the breakup. A full-scale inter-republic war is unlikely, but serious intercommunal conflict will accompany the breakup and will continue afterward. The violence will be intractable and bitter. There is little the United States and its European allies can do to preserve Yugoslav unity.” That country called Yugoslavia ceased to exist in 1992 –within exactly two years as predicted by the US. I wonder what the authors of that report are writing about Nigeria this moment. Ana...
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Nigeria: 38 Groups On Warpath Over Agricultural Biotechnology
20Nov By Akanimo SampsonNo Comments
Agriculture, News, Nigeria

Nigeria: 38 Groups On Warpath Over Agricultural Biotechnology

The move by the Federal Government of Nigeria under President Muhammadu Buhari’s watch to sway the citizenry to accept agricultural biotechnology has drawn the ire of 38 civic groups in the country. The groups have also denounced the release of Genetically Modified Cotton into the country The GMO-Free Nigeria Alliance, Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) and over 35 other groups in a statement wired to this reporter on Tuesday condemned efforts by government and biotech corporations to persuade Nigerians to accept agricultural biotechnology and denounced the registration and release of genetically modified (GM) cotton varieties (Maycho C567 BG II and Maycho C571 BG II) into Nigeria. This is coming as the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Agriculture in con...
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As FAO Marks World Antibiotic Awareness Week, Farmers Tasked To Boost Farm Hygiene
15Nov By Akanimo SampsonNo Comments
Agriculture, News, Nigeria

As FAO Marks World Antibiotic Awareness Week, Farmers Tasked To Boost Farm Hygiene

Boosting farm hygiene is currently an added key task to farmers around the world. As the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), an agency of the United Nations is marking the World Antibiotic Awareness Week, farmers are being reminded that they are frontline defenders against antimicrobial resistance. They are being reminded that they have a vital role to play in stemming the spread of antimicrobial resistance among disease-causing pathogens, and can make a significant contribution simply by adopting good hygiene practices during their day-to-day farm operations. This is the message that the UN agency is stressing this week, as the international community marks World Antibiotic Awareness Week. The responsible use of antimicrobial medicines is not just an issue in the human healt...
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