In Minna, Tinubu pledges to reform the agricultural sector

The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, has promised to undertake reforms in the agricultural sector to make it competitive.

He also promised to make the sector the foundation of Nigeria's new economy if he becomes president. Tinubu said this in Minna, Niger State yesterday during a meeting with agri-related actors, where he received endorsement from farmers and herders as well as fishing communities. .

Groups that endorsed the APC candidate for mayor included: All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Maize Association of Nigeria (MAAN), Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RiFAN), Federation of Agricultural Commodity Associations of Nigeria (FACAN) and Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN).

During the event, Tinubu, who adopted the presentation of the Chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF), Governor Abubakar Bagudu of Kebbi State, appointed the Governor to head a committee to a plan that will help reposition agriculture to take its rightful place of honor.

The presidential hopeful, in his speech titled “The Path to Agricultural Self-Sufficiency,” highlighted the important role that agriculture played in the country's economy before the discovery of oil.

While addressing his speech to the farmers, Tinubu acknowledged that every state in the country could offer something to ensure that the nation fully produces what it eats.

He said, “Northern Nigeria has great agricultural potential due to its abundant arable land. It must continue to walk at the forefront, if the sector is to progress significantly.

“Each state and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has some degree of competitive advantage in agriculture, whether it is horticulture or crop production, fishing, poultry or animal husbandry. Properly developed, these assets will not only satisfy our national needs, but will make Nigeria a global force in no time."

According to him, if Nigeria fully exploits its agricultural potential, its exports will reach a level such that the citizens will feed sub-Saharan Africa.

Adamu, a farmer, said Tinubu would do Nigerian farmers good because he understood their plight. Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau State described Tinubu as the son of a market woman, who crossed rural and urban communities to ply his trade, adding that it would link the city and the rural economy to create the prosperity for farmers.