The Federal Government has received the final report of the National Technical Working Group on the World Bank-supported US$500 million Sustainable Agricultural Value Chains for Growth Programme (AGROW), marking the completion of the programme’s design phase and paving the way for implementation.
Vice President Kashim Shettima received the report on Tuesday during a briefing at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, where he said the AGROW programme would help bridge the long-standing gap between farmers and the national planning and policymaking systems that shape the agricultural sector.
According to the Vice President, one of the biggest challenges facing Nigeria’s agriculture has been the disconnect between farmers who produce food and the institutions that influence the value of their labour.
He said the government is committed to closing that gap by placing farmers at the centre of agricultural policies and development initiatives.
Shettima described the report as “the conclusion of a design process that restores the farmer to the centre of our national economic reasoning, where he has always belonged.”
He noted that the programme was developed through seven zonal consultations covering 32 states, reflecting the growing commitment of state governments to agricultural transformation and their readiness to assume greater responsibility for productivity, rural infrastructure, extension services and market development.
With the design phase now completed, the Federal Government is expected to commence implementation of the AGROW programme, which aims to strengthen agricultural value chains, improve farmers’ access to markets, enhance productivity and support national efforts to boost food security, rural incomes and sustainable agricultural growth.
