By Danladi Ahmed
The Democratic Front (TDF) has described the ongoing training of 819 tractor operators as the beginning of a revolution in the agriculture sector.
In a statement signed by its Chairman, Mallam Danjuma Muhammad and Secretary, Chief Wale Adedayo, TDF noted that it was a key component of the Tinubu administration’s National Agricultural Mechanisation Policy. (NAMP)
It statement read, “We welcome the thrilling news from the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security on the commencement of training for 819 tractor operators as part of efforts to boost food production and enhance food security
“Our enthusiasm is further motivated by the realization of concerted efforts by President Bola Tinubu to enthrone an effective and sustainable National Agricultural Mechanisation Policy (NAMP) that will boost productivity in the agriculture sector.
“Nigeria’s potential as a major food producing nation is not in doubt, as agriculture was the mainstay of the economy long before the discovery of crude oil. But the failure by successive administrations to prioritize it, by infusing modern innovations and technology, has underdeveloped the sector.
“This failure has kept the national farming culture at a subsistence level and therefore can not cope with the demand of the ever growing population, much less the value added export opportunities.
“It is against this backdrop that we find it appropriate to commend President Tinubu for taking the bull by the horns in effecting a paradigm shift from the traditional subsistence approach to the advanced mechanized technique.
“Without doubt, the President Tinubu administration’s approach towards uplifting agriculture through a deliberate policy of mechanization is novel in a sector which has seen several unsuccessful attempts to develop the agriculture sector.
“The last 47 years have witnessed significant efforts by past governments to invest in the sector through various programmes including Operation Feed the Nation, Operation Green Revolution, Directorate for Food, Road, and Rural Infrastructure (DFRRI), Agricultural Development Project (ADB) and the Buhari administration’s Anchor Borrowers programme.
“However, none of these initiatives has succeeded in lifting farming beyond the subsistence level which is why the nation continues to experience shortfalls in its annual food supply for domestic consumption, thereby subjecting the economy to the constant agony of food inflation, which often drives the general inflation trend in Nigeria.”
TDF also provided insight into how efforts to boost mechanized farming will improve food production in the country.
“The key objective of Tinubu’s National Agricultural Mechanisation Policy (NAMP) is to take farming beyond subsistence to the innovative mechanized production level that will sufficiently meet the ever-increasing domestic consumption demands, and also make the country a net exporter of agricultural products.
“This is precisely why the Tinubu approach to agriculture in Nigeria fundamentally differs from the past attempts, and it is also why TDF believes that the action should resonate with Nigeriens
“The commencement of training for 819 Nigerian youths as tractor operators and mechanics, even before the consummation of the ongoing process to formalize the National Agricultural Mechanisation Policy (NAMP), definitely reveals the positive mindset and passion of the President to reinvent the nation’s past as an agrarian economy.
“It is instructive to emphasise that this novel stride in agriculture couldn’t have been undertaken under an economic environment that wastefully accommodates petroleum subsidy and multiple exchange rates regimes.
“We are convinced that the agricultural sector remains the best route to sustainable economic growth and advancement for Nigeria, because of its unlimited potential for job creation, wealth generation and food security,” the statement concluded.
TDF urged Nigerians, particularly the youths, to continue to support the government of President Tinubu in its effort to diversify the economy.
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