Given the importance of rice as a staple food in Nigeria, boosting its local production has been accorded high priority by the government and private players alike. In recent times, there has been increased participation in the rice value chain.
Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture (SFSA), in a recent Rice Value Chain Workshop in Abuja, has said it is committed to partnering with other stakeholders in the agricultural sector to improve the country’s rice value chains.
At a time when the country is hardest hit by food insecurity and many more Nigerians are losing access to daily meals, this commitment is relevant.
“This workshop is to verify and validate the assessment carried out by SFSA and Derftdan on targeted interventions to strengthen the rice value chain, analyse the study recommendations, and explore and translate China’s own successful value chain technologies and practices into approaches that can be adapted in Nigeria,” said Robert Berlin, head of Agricultural Services Operations at SFSA.
According to Berlin, the workshop is coming months after the federal government launched a ten-year National Rice Development Strategy (NRDS 11) aimed towards achieving self-sufficiency in rice production.
The one-day stakeholders’ workshop organised by the Foundation in collaboration with Derftdan Resources Limited, and themed “Strengthening the Rice Value Chain in Nigeria”, had in attendance policymakers, farmers groups, academia, financial institutions, government Institutions, and other major stakeholders across the rice value chain in the country.
Speaking at the sideline of the event, Isaiah Gabriel, Nigeria’s country program manager of Syngenta, said the goal of the study conducted by the Foundation and Derftdan was to provide an overview of rice production, post-harvest processing and marketing segments, and address the inefficiencies in the entire supply chain.
“Our goal is also to identify challenges and gaps, and explore strategies for translating China’s successful value chain practices into approaches that can be adopted in the country to boost its rice production and processing.”
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Gabriel added that the study was supported by 2,249 farmers’ surveys across eight states: Cross Rivers, Edo, Ebonyi, Jigawa, Kano, Kebbi, Nasarawa, and Niger.
Earlier, in his keynote address, Mohammed Mahmood Abubakar, minister of agriculture and rural development, represented by Bashir Umar, deputy director, Rice Value Chain, commended the Foundation for its contribution towards strengthening the rice value chain in Nigeria.
He assured the participants of the federal government’s readiness to support smallholder farmers and bridge the funding gap.
Also speaking, Richard Ogundele, a senior agribusiness consultant at Derftdan, presented some of the gaps in the rice sector.
According to him, opportunities to improve rice production in Nigeria cut across the entire value chain, but particular need for improvement lies in the areas of quality seed, mechanisation, irrigation, processing, and extension delivery services.
“If we cannot get these right, we will not be able to get there”, Ogundele said, adding that the nation needed to be focused and firm in its policy on rice, identifying market-oriented and import-dependent policy as the surest way to meet global demand.
“Once we get the rice quality standard right, every other thing will be in order”, he added.
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