Investment Oportunity

INVESTMENT POTENTIAL IN THE AGRICULTURAL CROP SECTOR

The Department through its activities have created enabling environment for investors in the Agricultural crop sector. We are aware that the total arable land in the country is 79 million ha and cultivated land 32 million ha, leaving a gap potential of 47 million ha.

The Present government is intensifying rapid increase in production output of cultivated land and clearing uncultivated lands for production.

The Federal Government approach Agriculture as Business venture and not developmental; therefor crops for which we has comparative advantage have being promoted; to this end, areas such as Production, Storage, Processing and Marketing has been a major focus of intervention.

Several Strategies has been deployed to bring the private sector to participate actively in these key aspect of the value chain; also linkages, support services and collaborations of requisite stakeholders like the State and Local Government, organized private sector, research and financial institutions have been strengthened to encourage information dissemination.

Crop Production:  This sector has over the years seen slow growth regardless of the fact that it employs 60% of the work force of the population and is a major source of food security for the rural population. However, recent activity of the Federal Government through the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA), the sector has received tremendous growth and support. This activity of Government has created a vast range of investment opportunity where the private sector can partner to create wealth and build agricultural production. The following illustrates areas where the sector can be exploited:

i.      Improved Seed/Seedling Production:  The awareness created to farmers through the Gross Enhancement Support (GES) implemented in the ATA project has enhanced the use of improved and certified seeds/seedling by the farmers. This sector is key to achieving goals set to increase food production. Therefore the production of Breeder seeds/seedling is huge investment potential to explore by the private sector.

ii.            Agro Service Centres: These centres will serve as a one-stop shop for farmers to access high quality Improved seeds, fertilizers and agro chemicals. To boost the potentials and necessity of these centres the Federal government has built and concession One-Stop Shops built in all the 36 states and FCT to private sector. The private sector are by these stimulated to replica such centres in their agro ecological areas to supply the inputs needs to farmers

     

iii     Agricultural Equipment Hiring Enterprise (AEHE): Due to the low mechanization practice 0.25hp/ha in the country and the fragmented farm holding of our farmers. It is not profitable for small scale farmers to own tractors and other heavy mechanical equipment. The demand for tillage, harvesting and threshing equipment is very high during the cropping season. The Government in other to encourage the private sector to invest in equipment hiring, set up 80 AEHE to render mechanized services to farmers. Equipment such as tractor cum implements, power tillers; threshers; sprayers etc are hired by the farmers at a fee. Considering the number of farmers spread across the country with constant demand for mechanized services makes investing in AEHE a worthy investment to the private sector.

To enhance the availability of skilled equipment operators, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development operates an Agricultural Machinery Mechanics and Operators Training Centre (AMMOTRAC) located in Misau in Bauchi state and Akure in Ondo State. Therefor investors can visit the centres and re-train or request for qualified skilled operators to handle their equipment.    

iv.           Community Storage Facilities: The drive by the Federal Government to increase crop production opens an investment opportunity for community storage facilities. These facilities will aid farmers store their produce at a fee. This will create stability of their products.  The Government centre Crop Storage Unit in Ibadan can assist investors on the best storage facilities and fabrication cost variable that will suite their peculiar crop catchment area.

v.            Staple Crop Processing Zones (SCPZ): This is being developed at various locations of crop production cluster to drive food processing and manufacturing industries. The Private sector are the main focus of these centre to invest in areas of high food production, to set up food processing plants; reduce current high levels of post-harvest losses, add value for increased local content of foods, link farmers in clusters to food manufacturing plants, create jobs and drive rapid rural economic growth.

vi.           Fabrication of Simple Farm Equipment: The subsistence nature of the farmers in the country requires that handtools are mainly utilized for farm practice. To increase the utilization of appropriate technology, the Ministry operates a Blacksmiths and Artisan Training Centre (BATSU) Ilorin Kwara State; empowers trainees to set up workshops to fabricate improved appropriate technology like the Treadle pump, Jab planters etc. Investor can utilize the vast knowledge of the trainees to set up Agricultural equipment fabrication workshop delivering quality equipment to farmers.

vii.         Animal Feed Production: Waste such as husk, chaff, etc from threshed crops are a good source of preparation of animal feed. The current drive for value addition of crop will create more waste in the processing centres. An investor can harness these residues to formulate high quality feeds.

viii.        Farmers Market: In order to establish an organized farmers market the Federal Government has constructed Paddy Aggregation Centre, Farmers markets, etc these centres are prototypes to stimulate private sector participation to increase the linkage and reduce the gap existing between producers, processors, marketers, collectors and consumers.   

  

ix.           Export Crops: The country has experienced challenges in meeting up the standard requirement for exporting our crop produce to the international market. This constraint has made the government to establish Marketing Boards to guide local investors and producers on standards requirements on and off-farm produce. Also with the recent introduction and utilization of improved seeds/seedling by farmers; yields and quality has increased. Thus investor stands to gain immensely in their export commodity.

x.            Credit: There are various credit windows established by the government and domiciled in the Bank of Agriculture (BoA) and Bank of Industry (BoI) to assist investors invests in Agriculture. Programs such as Animal Traction and Handtools Technology Program (ATHP), High Quality Cassava Floor production, Cottage industry Development, Agricultural Equipment Hiring Enterprise (AEHE), Cotton Development Programme etc are few windows that investors can approach the banks concerned at partake.

Conclusion:  The Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, through its States and Regional offices have put in place enabling environment for private sector Investment in Agriculture. a visit to any offices will assist any would be investor to undertake their investment in the country and the Department of Agriculture through its mandate drives that purpose. Try us today.