Senate Faults CBN On Anchor Borrowers Programme

THE Senate on Thursday faulted the Central
Bank of Nigeria (CBN’s) Anchor Borrowers
Programme (ABP), insisting that the apex
bank was not in the position to implement it.
The Chairman, Senate Committee on
Agriculture and Rural Development, Sen
Abdullahi Adamu, argued that the Ministry of
Agriculture has the primary mandate to
implement all national agricultural policies of
the country.
The chairman who spoke at the 2019 National
Agricultural Show and World Food Day
celebration in Karu, Nasarawa State, said the
Ministry of Agriculture should be allowed to
take over the ABP scheme for it to properly
reach the intended beneficiaries.
According to him, part of the reason the
scheme cannot be said to be completely
successful is because it is not being operated
by the appropriate government agency. He
stressed the need to urgently revive the
country’s agricultural research institutes, as
they play vital role in applied research to
enhance production.
He said effort to attain food security is a
collective effort as ending food import is not a
day’s job, adding that what government
needed to do was to protect local farmers by
banning importation of food items local
farmers have comparative advantage in
production.
He said: “It is a long journey full of twists and
turns and even disappointments. But none of
that should discourage us as a nation
committed to this singular and laudable
objective of feeding ourselves and our
neighbours.
No matter how long a journey may be, it
begins with the first step. I believe that with
the above and other initiatives of the
President Muhammadu Buhari’s
administration, we have taken the first step.”
The senator who stressed the need for the
government to toe the lines of European
countries that provide subsidies to insulate
farmers against bankruptcy and loses, said the
country must stand up to the huge challenges
in agricultural development.
“It is high time we determined for ourselves
what is best for our agricultural development.
Agricultural subsidy is inevitable if we must
sustain current initiative,” he added.
The Chairman, All farmers Association of
Nigeria (AFAN) Kabir Ibrahim while
commending effort by the government to stem
illegal importation of food as an incentive to
local farmers to operate optimally, urged them
to encourage farmers by increasing access to
credit, food processing equipment and cold
storage, see less transportation by air and
road, improve exportation of agricultural
produce.
However, the Country Representative, Food
and Agriculture Organisation of the United
Nations (FAO), Suffyan Koroma stressed the
need for governments to adopt policies, food
standards and regulations that would prioritise
the availability and affordability of safe foods.
He also said private sector can positively
influence the food environment by adapting its
products to modern nutritional
recommendations. He said: “Farmers need
better incentives to increase and diversify the
production of high quality food.”