The Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, has said that agriculture attracted private sector investment valued at $8 billion in the past two years.
Adesina said this at a News Agency of Nigeria Forum on Sunday in Abuja.
He said that the huge investment was realised because of the positive impact of the Federal Government’s Transformation Agenda on agri-business in the country.
He said: “In the last two years, we have been able to attract $8 billion of private investment commitment into agriculture sector in Nigeria and $4 billion is being implemented as we speak.
“You look at Dangote for example, put up $9 billion into a petrochemical plant and also fertiliser manufacturing plant.
“Indorama put up $1.3 billion into fertiliser manufacturing company.
“”Idonrama is an Idonesian company.
“Notore put up $1.5 billion to expand its fertiliser manufacturing plant in Nigeria.
“Why are they doing that?
“It is because they see that the direction we are going with agriculture as a business is working.”
The minister said Syngenta, the world’s leading seeds production company, had established a company in Nigeria and hired 14 Nigerians as staff.
He quoted Michel Demare, the Global Chairman of Syngenta AG, a specialized chemicals company, which markets seeds and pesticides, as saying: “The direction Nigeria is going makes me feel that the demand for seeds is going to rise in the country.”
Adesina added that the best performing stocks in the Nigerian market today are agriculture-related stocks, which he said “perform better than banks”.
According to him, agriculture is now seen as a viable and profitable sector that creates a money trail that the banks can lend to.
He said the banks were currently adapting their profit-driven business to accommodate the agriculture sector owing to the massive potentials inherent in the sector.
The Minister pointed out that through the Federal Government’s Growth Enhancement Support scheme, banks had begun to offer loans to farmers, seed companies, and agro-businesses “like never before”.
He added: “Last year, the banks lent to those agro-dealers N3.5 billion, first time ever.
“Tthis year, the banks lent N20 billion to those agro-dealers.”
The minister said banks’ readiness to extend the loans offered to farmers and agro-dealers testified to the significant progress that had been made in the sector.
He commended the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, for his contribution to the growing confidence of the banks in the agriculture sector.