Senator Abdullahi Adamu, the Senate Committee Chairman on Agriculture has urged the Federal Government to move the operations and management of the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP) to the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD).
According to the Senator, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is not rightly positioned to carry out the operations of the initiative.
Speaking at the World Food Day exhibition in Tudunwada, Nasarawa state, Senator Adamu demanded that the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme be removed from under the auspices of the Central Bank of Nigeria, to further elevate the programme’s course.
In his remarks, “The ministry of agriculture, which has the primary mandate for implementing all national agricultural policies, should take over the scheme to properly cascade it to the intended beneficiaries.”
The Senator who also doubles as the chairman of the National Agricultural Foundation noted that if well implemented, the initiatives including, the Green Alternative, Anchor Borrowers Programme, National Livestock Transformation Plan, Tree Plantation plan and Cotton Production Plan would help reposition the agriculture sector.
He said, “President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration has initiated several new policy directives to encourage the three tiers of government to put their hands to the plow. It is the most sensible way to go.
“The federal and state governments must do everything possible to ensure that our land will turn green again with local food and cash crop production. I see a synergy among the three tiers of government following their commitment to agriculture. They will help to chart a new course for it.”
Senator Adamu further stressed the need to provide agricultural subsidies for farmers, while also charging the government to ban the importation of some food items.
“The protection of local farmers against foreign invaders must rank high in our list of priorities. The government should also review the mandate of the Nigeria Agriculture Quarantine Services as well as research institutes.”
AgroNigeria
