Prof. Baba El-Yakubu, a lecturer in the Chemical Engineering Department at Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) Zaria, has called on Vice President Kashim Shettima to spearhead an agricultural revolution in Northern Nigeria.

In a statement issued to journalists on Sunday in Sokoto, Mr El-Yakubu commended Mr Shettima’s remarks in a recent interview, where he stated that there was no reason for the North to be poor.

Mr El-Yakubu emphasised that the region had vast agricultural potential and should focus on this sector for economic emancipation.

He highlighted the need for a summit of northern governors, business leaders, and stakeholders to address the region’s challenges.

Mr El-Yakubu stressed that agriculture was the key to short-term salvation and advocated for a focus on value-addition to agricultural produce.

He cited the success of Babban Gona, a Nigerian company that had impacted over 850,000 smallholder farmers, and the Grameen Bank of Bangladesh, a Nobel Prize-winning model that provided training, education, credit, and inputs on a group basis.

Mr El-Yakubu emphasised the importance of adopting successful business models, scaling up private-sector-driven approaches, and making government interventions private-sector-driven.

He also called for careful planning and gradual adaptation of modern agricultural machinery.

The professor noted that Northern Nigeria had extensive fertile land suitable for various crops and highlighted the potential for rice, sugarcane, and groundnut production.

He urged the establishment of processing plants to add value to these crops and create jobs.

(NAN)