Commit 10% National Budget To Agric, FG Urged

Action Aid Nigeria, has urged government at all levels to implement the Maputo Declaration of 2003, which stipulates commitment of 10 per cent of national budget to the agriculture sector.
The Food and Agriculture Advisor to the international organisation, Mr Azubike Nwokoye, made the call on Thursday in Abuja, at a Photo Book and Exhibition organised to mark the International Day for Rural Women.
The theme of this year’s celebration is “social protection.’’

He said the government had not been able to implement the decision reached by African leaders in Maputo, rather there had been an annual decline in the amount committed to the agriculture sector.
“When you do not have enough money within the budget, you cannot provide social protection for the farmers.
“You cannot provide access to cheap credit, good insurance, access to quality farm input which are part of social protection; a lot needs to be done,’’ he said.
Nwokoye said the amount budgeted for the Growth Enhancement Support (GES) scheme of the Federal Government had also continued to decline over the years.

He said GES was an innovative programme that had recorded a lot of success in some parts of the country.
The advisor, however, noted that it also had some challenges that needed to be sorted out to make it sustainable.
Mr Sonny Echono, the Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, said the ministry was determined to redouble its efforts in strengthening the agricultural sector.
Echono, who was represented by the Director, Internal Audit, Abiodun Okesanya, said the ministry had succeeded in tackling hunger in the country.

He said that the ministry was not only looking at ensuring enough food supply in the country, but expecting to become a net exporter of food in the next few years.
He said the ministry was working to enhance access to land and funds for women in agriculture, adding that a bill had been sent to the National Assembly in that regard.
Also speaking, Adams Eloyi, the National Programme Director, Rural Youth Advocate for Health and Development for Nigeria, said rural communities were yet to feel the full impact of government programmes.
He said that people in the rural areas were marginalised because of lack of access to information technology, road and power supply.

According to him, most government development programmes are targeted at the rural poor, but often times the benefits does not reach the rural people.
Eloyi stressed the need for rural dwellers to be involved in designing government development programmes, and called for proper monitoring to ensure they were implemented in rural areas.

Source: http://www.thetidenewsonline.com/2015/10/19/commit-10-national-budget-to-agric-fg-urged/