Development Of Wheat Value Chain Will Conserve Nigeria’s Foreign Exchange – FG

The Federal Government has advocated the adoption of new farming technologies and robust synergy among stakeholders as a critical tool to the development of the wheat Value chain.

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mohammad Sabo Nanono said that promoting development in the wheat value chain would reduce importation, enhance food security, reduce poverty, create jobs and conserve scarce foreign exchange for the country.

Nanono speaking during the National Wheat Stakeholders Workshop in Kano State at the weekend, said that the Ministry through the Wheat Value Chain has put in place various measures to increase wheat production and productivity as well as reduce the import bill.

The Director, Federal Department of Agriculture, Karima Babangida, representing the Minister, informed participants that the Ministry had procured 30 Metric Tonnes of breeder seeds.

He noted that the country`s consumption pattern is greatly in favour of wheat and its derivatives such as pasta, noodles, flour, biscuits, baby foods and confectionary.

The Minister said this had resulted into major gap between the production and national consumption, as well as widening import bills.

He said, “It is therefore expected of all of us here to come up with how Nigeria can meet her wheat demand rather than importation”.

In his remarks,the Deputy Governor of Kano State, Nasiru Yusuf Gawuma commended the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration for the various policies in the agricultural sector.

He also stated that the Stakeholders Forum is critical towards achieving self reliance on food production especially Wheat.

Gawuma urged the Stakeholders to decide on how to move the Wheat production to the next level by targeting better seeds, new technologies and increase Internally Generated Revenue.