MARKET DEVELOPMENT
The Question of Sustaining ATA
The Question of Sustaining ATA
08/10/2014 (Nigerian Tribune) - FEMI IBIROGBA examines various policies aimed at entrenching agriculture in Nigeria since independence and factors affecting such, as well as how Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA) can avoid the same fate.
Policies have never been the problem in agriculture and all other sectors of the Nigerian economy. As political administrations come and go since independence, so also are cleverly formulated policies and initiatives. The major problems remain, however, policy implementation and sustainability after the initiators.
The 1960s were characterised by public interventionist policies in agriculture. The government’s main objective was to boost domestic production, particularly of cash crops, pushing Nigeria to the position of the world’s top producer of rubber, groundnuts, palm oil and the world’s second-largest cocoa producer.
The period covering 1970 and 1986 coincided with massive petroleum exploitation, marked by lack of interest in supporting agriculture. The drastic decline in agricultural production made the country to depend on imported foodstuffs and agro-allied products. Sequel to the major food crisis in the country in 1976, programmes such as ‘Feed the Nation’ (1976-1979) and ‘Green Revolution’ (1979-1983) were set up, focusing mainly on strengthening agricultural production, providing subsidised inputs, community development and access to credit facilities. The problem, however, was that agricultural policies were implemented without a transparent framework and legal backing for structural policy sustainability and the successive governments did not ensure continuity. The enactment of the Land Use Act in 1978, however, marked an historic turning point for land use management in Nigeria.
The government turned its attention to the agricultural sector, again, in 1998, adopting an agricultural policy with the objective, among others, of ensuring food security for the population by developing local production.
The National Food Security Programme (NFSP) issued in August 2008 by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources was also designed to attain food security by ensuring that all Nigerians have access to quality food, while making Nigeria a major exporter of foodstuffs. The programme designated priority crops of cassava, rice, millet and wheat) for achieving food security and outlines objectives for all stages of these supply chains.
Chief Olusegun Obasano-led government also launched the Presidential Initiatives in 1999 for seven agricultural products, which were cassava, rice, vegetable oil, sugar, livestock, cultivated trees and dry grains. The aim of these initiatives was not only to boost Nigeria’s agricultural exports by taking advantage of preferential agreements in the framework of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the Economic Partnership Agreements between the European Union and the Africa-Caribbean-Pacific countries, but also to make the most of the potential regional market made up of neighbouring countries.
As good as the policies appeared, they all failed to achieve the essence, making Nigeria sufficient in food production.
And here comes the ATA of the President Goodluck Jonathan-led administration, driven by the Minister of Agriculture, Dr Akinwumi Adesina.
In 2011, President Jonathan launched the ATA, with the goal of adding an additional 20 million MT of food to the domestic food supply by 2015 and stimulating the creation of 3.5 million jobs along the agricultural value chains.
To achieve these, the ministry of agriculture is working to create ecosystems in which small, medium, and large-scale farming systems not only co-exist but also flourish. It is also focusing on creating value added products from staple crops zones. Various commodities and areas under consideration in the ATA include youth involvement in agriculture as business; Staple Crops Processing (infrastructure-enabled) Zones (SCPZ) being developed to attract agribusiness investors into rural areas; agribusiness financing schemes; growth enhancement scheme; cassava flour inclusion bread and confectioneries; oil palm and cocoa rejuvenation initiatives; mechanisation drive; private sector investment acceleration and rice transformation, among others.
Despite the clear articulation of and meticulous implementation of ATA policy, observers and many Nigerians have persistently expressed concerns over its continuity after Adesina and Jonathan. The common question has always been: “What becomes of ATA after Adesina/Jonathan?”
One of the ways experts and stakeholders have advocated for ATA’s continuity is the use of instrumentality of the law by enactments of the National Assembly. It will be recalled that first attempts by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture to ensure an Act to back cassava value chain (cassava flour inclusion in bread and other confectioneries) were futile, allegedly for political reasons. Among the advocates of legal instruments for ATA are the Managing Director of Oluji Cocoa Products, Mr Akin Olusuyi, who has also advocated creation of commodity marketing boards for major cash crops produced in the country.
Dr Ademola Raji, former provost of the Federal College of Animal Health and Production Technology, Ibadan and Director of Animal Production and Husbandary Services in the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, said enactment of legislative Acts would ensure not only the success of ATA, but would also make it sustainable.
Also, Regional Representative and Coordinator of Africa Rice Centre in Nigeria, Dr Francis Nwilene, said what would make the ATA a sustainable venture, whether Adesina and Jonathan are there or not, is active participation of the private sector investors, saying running agriculture as a business, with private investor-driven implementation, would ensure continuity.
Another important factor stakeholders have called for is establishment and strengthening of agricultural institutions, bodies and agencies, as well as encouragement of the private sector investors in agriculture via the creation of favourable policies and appropriate laws.
At 54, Nigeria is still struggling with food security, but if efforts put in place in the last couples of years are sustained, experts and stakeholders believe, Nigeria will soon reach the goal of food sufficiency and its attendants of job creation, improved living standard, wealth creation and diversification of the economy.
Policies have never been the problem in agriculture and all other sectors of the Nigerian economy. As political administrations come and go since independence, so also are cleverly formulated policies and initiatives. The major problems remain, however, policy implementation and sustainability after the initiators.
The 1960s were characterised by public interventionist policies in agriculture. The government’s main objective was to boost domestic production, particularly of cash crops, pushing Nigeria to the position of the world’s top producer of rubber, groundnuts, palm oil and the world’s second-largest cocoa producer.
The period covering 1970 and 1986 coincided with massive petroleum exploitation, marked by lack of interest in supporting agriculture. The drastic decline in agricultural production made the country to depend on imported foodstuffs and agro-allied products. Sequel to the major food crisis in the country in 1976, programmes such as ‘Feed the Nation’ (1976-1979) and ‘Green Revolution’ (1979-1983) were set up, focusing mainly on strengthening agricultural production, providing subsidised inputs, community development and access to credit facilities. The problem, however, was that agricultural policies were implemented without a transparent framework and legal backing for structural policy sustainability and the successive governments did not ensure continuity. The enactment of the Land Use Act in 1978, however, marked an historic turning point for land use management in Nigeria.
The government turned its attention to the agricultural sector, again, in 1998, adopting an agricultural policy with the objective, among others, of ensuring food security for the population by developing local production.
The National Food Security Programme (NFSP) issued in August 2008 by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources was also designed to attain food security by ensuring that all Nigerians have access to quality food, while making Nigeria a major exporter of foodstuffs. The programme designated priority crops of cassava, rice, millet and wheat) for achieving food security and outlines objectives for all stages of these supply chains.
Chief Olusegun Obasano-led government also launched the Presidential Initiatives in 1999 for seven agricultural products, which were cassava, rice, vegetable oil, sugar, livestock, cultivated trees and dry grains. The aim of these initiatives was not only to boost Nigeria’s agricultural exports by taking advantage of preferential agreements in the framework of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the Economic Partnership Agreements between the European Union and the Africa-Caribbean-Pacific countries, but also to make the most of the potential regional market made up of neighbouring countries.
As good as the policies appeared, they all failed to achieve the essence, making Nigeria sufficient in food production.
And here comes the ATA of the President Goodluck Jonathan-led administration, driven by the Minister of Agriculture, Dr Akinwumi Adesina.
In 2011, President Jonathan launched the ATA, with the goal of adding an additional 20 million MT of food to the domestic food supply by 2015 and stimulating the creation of 3.5 million jobs along the agricultural value chains.
To achieve these, the ministry of agriculture is working to create ecosystems in which small, medium, and large-scale farming systems not only co-exist but also flourish. It is also focusing on creating value added products from staple crops zones. Various commodities and areas under consideration in the ATA include youth involvement in agriculture as business; Staple Crops Processing (infrastructure-enabled) Zones (SCPZ) being developed to attract agribusiness investors into rural areas; agribusiness financing schemes; growth enhancement scheme; cassava flour inclusion bread and confectioneries; oil palm and cocoa rejuvenation initiatives; mechanisation drive; private sector investment acceleration and rice transformation, among others.
Despite the clear articulation of and meticulous implementation of ATA policy, observers and many Nigerians have persistently expressed concerns over its continuity after Adesina and Jonathan. The common question has always been: “What becomes of ATA after Adesina/Jonathan?”
One of the ways experts and stakeholders have advocated for ATA’s continuity is the use of instrumentality of the law by enactments of the National Assembly. It will be recalled that first attempts by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture to ensure an Act to back cassava value chain (cassava flour inclusion in bread and other confectioneries) were futile, allegedly for political reasons. Among the advocates of legal instruments for ATA are the Managing Director of Oluji Cocoa Products, Mr Akin Olusuyi, who has also advocated creation of commodity marketing boards for major cash crops produced in the country.
Dr Ademola Raji, former provost of the Federal College of Animal Health and Production Technology, Ibadan and Director of Animal Production and Husbandary Services in the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, said enactment of legislative Acts would ensure not only the success of ATA, but would also make it sustainable.
Also, Regional Representative and Coordinator of Africa Rice Centre in Nigeria, Dr Francis Nwilene, said what would make the ATA a sustainable venture, whether Adesina and Jonathan are there or not, is active participation of the private sector investors, saying running agriculture as a business, with private investor-driven implementation, would ensure continuity.
Another important factor stakeholders have called for is establishment and strengthening of agricultural institutions, bodies and agencies, as well as encouragement of the private sector investors in agriculture via the creation of favourable policies and appropriate laws.
At 54, Nigeria is still struggling with food security, but if efforts put in place in the last couples of years are sustained, experts and stakeholders believe, Nigeria will soon reach the goal of food sufficiency and its attendants of job creation, improved living standard, wealth creation and diversification of the economy.