President Bola Tinubu, on Thursday, declared a state of emergency on food security.
Tinubu also approved that all matters pertaining to food and water availability and affordability, as essential livelihood items, be included within the purview of the National Security Council.
Special Adviser to the President on Special Duties, Communications, and Strategy, Dele Alake, disclosed this while briefing State House correspondents after consultations with key stakeholders in the agricultural sector at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
He said that the President has directed an immediate release of fertilizers and grains to farmers and households to mitigate the effects of the subsidy removal.
According to him, “We will immediately release fertilizers and grains to farmers and households to mitigate the effects of the subsidy removal.
“There will be an organic synergy between the Ministry of Agriculture and the use of water resources to ensure adequate irrigation of farmlands and to guarantee that food is available all year round.
“As a country, Mr. President has made it clear that we are no longer comfortable with seasonal farming. We can no longer afford to have farming downtime.”
The Presidential spokesman further explained that the Federal Government will partner with states to create ranches in those that are willing to avail lands.
He said the ranches will have sections dedicated as grazing reserves.
According to him, “We will establish ranches in collaboration with state government and the federal government will pay for the land.”
Alake explained that the government at the centre will activate land banks nationwide, which currently stand at 500,000 hectares mapped “to increase the availability of arable land for farming which will immediately impact food output.”
This is as the Central Bank has advised middlemen withholding grains to release supplies at their disposal as prices are likely to fall when the government begins to distribute grains.
