Nigeria is now Africa’s largest rice producer, this is according to Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Sabo Nanono.
The Minister made this known while speaking at an event to mark the 2020 World Food Day, stating that a range of policies and initiatives to strengthen the rice and cassava value chains has been put in place.
Nanono further disclosed that they are harnessing the economic potential of both livestock and fisheries. He said;
“Significant progress has been made to improve agricultural productivity since the inception of the present administration.
“To boost food security, Nigeria has curbed imports and has established a robust rice production programme to encourage more rice production at home.
“Efforts in this direction are starting to show results as Nigeria is now Africa’s largest producer of rice. The country is also the largest producer of cassava in the world.”
On diversifying the economy, the Minister said the Federal Government through the Agro Processing Productivity Enhancement and Livelihood Improvement Support project had set aside N600bn as loan support to 2.4 million farmers across the country.
