By Mohammed Kandi
Every time the budget is approved and passed in the country for the financial year, most government ministries, parastatals and agencies always heave a sigh of relief.
In an ideal situation, payment of salaries and provision of infrastructure in its entirety for the people should be the main drive, but, when a higher part of the budget goes for payment of salaries alone and taking care of government official to the detriment of infrastructural development there is a need to worry.
Just like what obtains in several parts of Africa, there have been criticisms that the Nigerian agricultural sector is underfunded, even as there are questions as to how the meagre allocation that goes to the sector is utilized.
Farmers and prospective investors from the private sector have over the years condemned the insufficient budgetary allocation for agriculture in Nigeria, placing the scanty ration at between three to four percent yearly. The sector has not only suffered neglect by successive governments but had its potentials of transforming the country’s economy and creating copious employment for its teaming farming population shattered.
Some analysts have attributed lack of political will on the part of our leaders, corruption, over-bloated contracts for agricultural facilities and programmes and issuance of such to syndicated company, lack of prudent verification and supervision in the system, as well as lack of accountability as part of the problems bedevilling the sector in the country.
In spite of Nigeria’s rich agricultural resource endowment, there has remained a gradual decline in the sector’s contributions to the nation’s economy. But the sector remains the largest contributor and mainstay of the Nigerian economy, accounting for over 38% of the non-oil foreign exchange earnings, and employing about 70% of the active labour force of the population.
According to World Bank estimates, Nigeria’s agricultural GDP increased at an annual rate of 2.9% in 1990-98.
In the case of the ministry, in 2010, the allocation to the ministry of agriculture, rural development and water resources was N149, 900,754, 219. But in 2011, when the ministry was split into two; the Agriculture and Rural Development ministry, and the Water Resources ministry, their combined budgetary allocation was a paltry N54, 218, 283, 281, meaning a total of N95, 682,470,938 was shaved off.
Going by the proposed budgetary allocation for the year 2012 by the federal government, projecting about 4.749 Trillion Naira amounting to six percent increase over the N4.48 Trillion in 2011, and with the Agriculture & Rural Development ministry expecting N78.98 billion, many experts and farmers alike have not only expressed optimism on possible improvement, but also seeing it as a good omen for the sector.
Owing to the apparent loss of confidence by majority of the farmers, they are of the belief that nothing positive would come out from the ministry based on previous experiences despite assurances by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Akinwumi Adesina at different forum to make agriculture attractive again.
The minister in his words of encouragement and support to farmers, said that the current administration was very determined to evolve a robust agricultural policy that will make farming more meaningful in the country.
To this end he said, the Federal Government, through its Agricultural Transformation Action Plan (TAP), plans to establish the Cassava Market and Trade Development Corporation (CMTDC) to provide the key component for the implantation of value chain activities to engender the development of the agricultural sector.
Akinwumi said he was confident that the implementation of the value chain programme will be anchored on a private-public arrangement, involving significant investments that will expand cassava production.
The minister noted that through the ATAP enterprise which is another initiative of the Federal Government, the quality of the country’s selected crops such as cassava, rice, cocoa and cotton will be enriched while also ensuring better prices for the produce in international markets.
On their part, farmers have stressed the need for the government to extend similar action plans to other areas of agriculture so as to ensure a holistic development of the agricultural sector.
They said there is need for government to convince them on its will in repositioning agriculture and why they should trust it to do same.
They want assurances that under the new arrangement the farmers and the sector will receive a boost; and that their condition as subsistent farmers will be improved upon. They need to be assured of transparency and sincerity of purpose, especially in terms of equitable distribution of agricultural resources. The farmers have had to live with the reality that there are still issues in agriculture that have remained unaddressed.
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