Wale Edun, Nigeria’s Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, has unveiled an ambitious strategy to expand domestic agricultural production and increase food security.
Edun, speaking at a news conference in Abuja on Thursday to commemorate the country’s 64th Independence Day, said that the period of excessive food importation must stop, citing this transition as a key component of the government’s economic recovery strategy.
“We should not be importing food,” Edun stated, stressing that Nigeria’s future lies in self-sufficiency.
The government, he said, was dedicated to assisting small-scale farmers by providing key inputs including as seeds and fertilizer through programs like the Nigerian Agricultural Growth Scheme.
The assistance will concentrate on improving both wet and dry season harvests, lowering the demand for imports in the short term while increasing productivity in the long run.
As an immediate response, the government has ordered maize and wheat imports to help stabilize the food market.
However, Edun emphasized the significance of balancing this with domestic output.
“It is critical that we do not disrupt domestic production of food. It is critical that we do not disrupt farming in Nigeria by flooding the market with imports,” he warned.
As Edun pointed out, the transition away from food imports is not just an economic necessity, but also a key step toward Nigeria’s future self-sufficiency.
“This is not where we should be,” he said of the country’s reliance on imported food. The new strategy, he argued, will put Nigeria on the path to economic independence and food security.
Edun’s comments come as Nigeria faces rising food prices and a faltering agricultural industry that delivers much lower yields than global standards.
The government’s long-term goal is to more than double agricultural productivity by improving local seedlings and farming techniques.
The push to improve agriculture is an important aspect of a larger economic transformation, as the country grapples with the consequences of the recent removal of gasoline subsidies.
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s Minister of Budget and National Planning, Abubakar Bagudu, has identified the country’s expanding population as a major concern.
Bagudu remarked that since Nigeria’s population has doubled from 119 million in 1999 to 230 million now, the demand for infrastructure, education, and healthcare has increased.
He said, “There are 230 million of us. Not surprisingly, demand for government services, infrastructure, financing for education, and health services has grown significantly.
“In fact, in 1999, which is 25 years into our democratic journey, our population was 119 million. But while our population has been growing fivefold, our economy has not expanded as quickly as the population has expanded.”
