From: Bashir Aliyu Mayere, Abuja
The senate has passed to second reading a bill for an act to provide a comprehensive legal framework for the transformation and modernization of agriculture in Nigeria
It also to promote food security, agricultural.ptoductivity mechanisation ,irrigation ,agricultural financing, agro industrialization, rural development and climate resilient farming and for other related matters
The Deputy senate president who sponsored the bill believed that the issue of agriculture which has been the mainstay of the economy of this country is not going in the right direction.
He argued that during the first and second republic this country was well fed, the country was producing agricultural produce that was driving our economy, factories were everywhere ,in Legos, Port Harcourt, Kano and Kaduna textile companies, several processing industries, the country was doing well.
He added that nowhere that you could go without seeing people well managed, things were going in the right direction.
He said the Government tried to sustain the agricultural programmes but lack of legal framework perhaps is what made things to scattered
“There wasn’t any legal framework to support that government program at that time, then when we got into the 90s, everything got scattered in terms of agricultural production. And as we speak, industries are no more functioning, go to sharada area in Kano, Kaduna now nothing 8s going on in terms of industrial activities”
Senator Barau further explained that this administration is doing its best in bringing reforms therefore we can nit leave every thing to Mr President we have to co.ok3.ent his efforts thus the 8dear of bringing the bill to holistically revolutionise the agricultural sector in Nigeria
Supporting the bill Senator Muhammad Tahir Monguno said What this bill essentially seeks to achieve is to bring a holistic approach
rather than the segmented approach that we have now, a holistic approach towards addressing issues that concerns agriculture in this country
He believes that agriculture is an important sector that we cannot afford to relegate it to the background
Senator Babangida Hussain in hus contribution on the bill said as a farmer, since 1976, when the Agricultural Credit Guarantee Scheme was launched up to today, we have not been able to provide
a sustainable financing plan for agriculture.
Saying this is one area that the bill is seeking to harmonize and to bring under one umbrella.
“the advance in agriculture is such that some countries are even producing colored cotton now instead of dyeing cotton for our fabric.
If you go to Chile, they have a university of cotton in Chile today. They produce colored cotton.
So I think what the bill is seeking to do is to bring all of these measures, all of these policies and programs under one umbrella.”
Senator Babangida further emphasised that If we can disarticulate the value chain and ensure that everything that is linkages between the various sectors in the value chain will be able to achieve what the bill intended to do.
