The Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Bagudu, has called on Nigerian youths to embrace scientific and technological approach to agriculture.
According to him, with a 170 million farming population, Nigeria can be food-secured if the critical mass in agriculture is empowered to triple its yield.
The minister stated this in Abuja on Monday during an interactive session and workshop on developing bankable business proposals for youths and women in agriculture organised by the African Development Bank Group.
The minister advocated effective training of youths and women in the application of science and technology to the agricultural value chain.
He explained that this would not only improve the processes and increase yield but would also make them bankable.
He said investment in agriculture was critical and pointed out that Nigeria with its huge absorptive capacity was primed to utilise verse investments in all aspects of its national life.
“One of the amazing features of the Nigerian economy is its absorptive capacity, meaning the ability to absorb investment in various facets of our national life.”
He noted that the country’s population and stage of development made it investment-ready, adding that the role of public policy was to identify the needs of the people and help them surmount their challenges. And that the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning in conjunction with the Ministries of Agriculture and Food Security; Communication and Digital Economy; Youths Development; and Arts, Culture and Creative Economy had put in place a governance system at the 8,809 wards of the federation to maximise the opportunities in the agriculture value chain.
Speaking further, He urged the youth to take advantage of the President Bola Tinubu administration’s focus on agriculture and food security under its Renewed Hope Agenda and lead the way in modernising agriculture by applying science and technology to the development of their business plans.
Bagudu praised his colleagues, Senator Abubakar Kyari, Agriculture and Food Security; Mr Bosun Tijani, Communications and Digital Economy; Ms Jamila Bio-Ibrahim, Youth Development; and Ms Hanatu Musawa, Arts, Culture and Creative Economy, for their collaborative efforts to improve on the agriculture value chain.
