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Nigeria can stop rice importation by 2015 – AfDB official

By on February 14, 2013

The African Development Bank (AfDB) has expressed optimism that Nigeria can stop the importation of rice by 2015, if the right things are done. Dr Patrick Agboma, the AfDB’s Chief Operations Officer, said on Wednesday in Abuja.

Agboma said that all the Federal Government needed to do was to triple rice production from the current production figures. “If you hear about the amount of rice the country imports, you will wonder why it cannot produce its own rice. So the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA) is to address this shortfall.’’

Dr Akinwumi Adesina, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, had announced in 2012 that the country will stop the importation of rice by 2015, as the commitment to ensure rice sufficiency.

According to him, the bank is willing to help the Federal Government attain its food sufficiency target. He recalled that the bank had earlier received a request from the Federal Government for assistance toward the agricultural agenda.

 

[Daily Times]