Agricultural development in Nigeria | agriculture prospects

IT is known fact that agriculture is the mainstay of any economy, and
is fundamental to social economic development of any nation. 

This is because agriculture represents a strategic asset to the overall
well-being of a nation's economy. It provides food, clothing,
generates foreign exchange among others.

This is why I find it very pitiful that in a great nation like
Nigeria, a nation filled with agricultural potentials, agricultural
development has waned considerably. In the past agriculture provided
for the nation, Nigeria was a major exporter of agricultural
commodities such as cocoa, groundnut, cotton and many others. That was
before discovery of oil at Oloibiri in 1958 with oil money rolling in,
agriculture fell out of grace and was relegated to the background at
great national and domestic cost.

Today, agriculture has lost its pride of place in the Nigerian economy
as all focus lies in the oil sector for the survival of the country.
As a matter of fact, Nigeria does not meet UN's standard for the
agricultural sector, as only 10 percent of the country's budget goes
to agriculture.

The position of the nation's economy is a matter of grave concern and
call for urgent attention. Clearly, Nigeria's agriculture need
revolution and lessens can be drawn from a country like China, whose
impressive agricultural achievements has raised hundreds of millions
of peasants from rural poverty in the past 30 years.

 

Despite the history and geographical differences, there are vital
lessons Nigeria can learn from China's agricultural achievements. In
China, agriculture grew at an annual average rate of 4.5 percent.
Agricultural development and reforms was a top priority for their
government, from the central to the local units. The steady growth in
agriculture and rural economy was significant to the acceleration of
China's modernization process. One of the poorest areas of Shandong
Province in China was turned in a "Vegetable City" with more than
53,000 hectare vegetable plantations boosting of more than 700
vegetable varieties are providing approximately four million tons
annually.

Since the 1950s, China has taken agriculture as the country's economic
base. Analysis shows that between the periods of 1981-2005, China's
agricultural sector was transformed from "one characterized by high
and variable distortions to one that is relatively liberal."

 Funds were made available for farmers' education to ensure appropriate
training and uptake; and also for agricultural research and extension.
China was an early adopter of Green Revelation research and hybrid
rice and was the second country in world after the United States known
for spending on agricultural biotechnology Agricultural markets were
greatly encouraged in China, which prove to be a key factor in the
alleviation of poverty in the country.

In the 1980s, food interment, production and rural income were a
central pillar of the broader economic development agenda. The
objective was to create food security, rural stability surplus income
and labour supply to drive broader industrial development. 

This development enabled a population of about 200 million small hood
farmers with each utilizing an average of 0.65 hectares to feed a
population of 1.3 billion people. As a matter of fact, agriculture in
China, has contributed greatly to the reduction of poverty in the
country. Statistics shows that the incidence poverty in China has
dropped from 31 percent in 1978, to 200 percent in 2008.

Furthermore, China adopted the land reform policy known as the
"Household Responsibility System", a privately leased land use system.
The major objective of this strategy was to boost the rural economy
and increase farmers' income so that farmers could have the incentive
to work and produce more and production diversification could take
place. The strategy bore fruit, and food production is greatly
enhanced. Agricultural output grew at 7.7 percent annually.

The Chinese also put in place necessary institutions that ensured and
enabled true classroom China created the R&D institute (Research &
Development Institute) and universities focusing on agricultural
innovations. They discovered and implemented new models for seed,
fertilizers, and hydraulics. Technology into played a crucial role in
the Chinese's agricultural development. It helped China improve their
efficiency of production and maintain sustainable agricultural
development.

Today, China is the world's largest producer of agricultural products.
Their primary produce induces rice, millet, potatoes, sorghum,
peanuts, tea, fish cotton wheat, perk, barley, and oilseed. China's
agricultural sector employs over 300 million farmers and produces food
capable of feeding 20 percent of the world population.

There are necessary lessons Nigeria need to learn, but first
agriculture needs to be given its rightful place as the mainstay of
the economy; agriculture needs to be made as a top priority in the
country. And in addition, there must be proper administration, void of
corruption and misappropriate of funds and the budgetary allocation to
agricultural must be substantially increased. It is time for a change;
it is time for a revolution.

You and I are the one to make things right back in the agricultural sector of these nation, don't wait till tomorrow start something we are committed to helkping you succeed and invest wisely into agricultural business in Nigeria and beyond start tune to this blog and subscribe your email so as not to miss our future updates.

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