The Nigeria Independent Funding Authority has highlighted the have an effect on of the Presidential Fertiliser Initiative which has been instrumental in reworking the population’s agricultural sector since its inception in 2016.
The initiative, which has stored Nigeria over N60 billion once a year by means of getting rid of fertiliser subsidies, was once the point of interest of a stakeholders’ roundtable hung on Monday.
The development, themed “The Presidential Fertiliser Initiative: Imperative for Food Security,” introduced in combination key avid gamers within the trade to check the initiative’s achievements and chart a route for its date.
In a observation issued on Monday, NSIA spokesperson, Joyce Onyegbula, famous that the PFI has now not handiest addressed long-standing inefficiencies in Nigeria’s fertiliser sector but in addition ended in the resuscitation and established order of 84 mixing crops around the six geo-political zones of the rustic.
This success has been additional complemented by means of the founding of over 100,000 direct and oblique jobs, and the past of greater than $200 million in foreign currencies financial savings.
“The PFI, under the strategic leadership of the NSIA, has commendably resuscitated and established 84 blending plants across the six geo-political zones in Nigeria, accrued over USD200 million in foreign exchange savings, created more than 100,000 direct and indirect jobs, and generated annual fiscal savings of over N60 billion from fertiliser subsidy elimination. To date, the initiative has delivered 90 million bags of locally blended high-quality fertilizers to farmers,” the observation stated.
On the tournament, the Managing Director and CEO of NSIA, Aminu Umar-Sadiq, represented by means of the Head of Company Making plans at NSIA, Sybil Etuk, emphasized that “the PFI aligns with the authority’s mandate to strengthen the agricultural sector, uphold import substitution as a critical lever for national development, and ultimately create shared value for all stakeholders.”
In spite of international disruptions such because the COVID-19 pandemic and the continued Russia-Ukraine struggle, the PFI has ensured a gradual provide of fertilisers, safeguarding the rustic’s agricultural productiveness.
Alternatively, the NSIA said that foreign currencies fluctuations proceed to pose demanding situations, specifically within the procurement of key imported uncooked fabrics, including complexity to the price chain.
The authority’s Venture Manage, Iruansi Itoandon, praised the initiative, calling it “a shining example of what we can achieve when we work together with a shared vision for our country’s future.”
Taking a look forward, the NSIA is concerned with positioning the PFI for even larger have an effect on, with discussions ongoing about transitioning the initiative to complete personal sector regulate for its persevered good fortune.
The President, Fertiliser Manufacturers and Providers Affiliation of Nigeria, Sadiq Kassim, proposed the established order of a fertiliser institute in collaboration with FEPSAN to “build the technical and financial capacity of players within the ecosystem.”