The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Muhammad Nanono, says the ‘2021 Feed Nigeria Summit’ will strengthen Nigeria’s agribusiness ecosystem.

The minister said this at the summit’s opening in Abuja, noting the need to reposition the agricultural sector as the nation’s key economic growth vehicle.

According to him, noting that the theme of the summit could not be ”more pivotal to the national discourse on how to create a sustainable growth trajectory, using agriculture as the leverage to revive and stabilise the economy.”

The summit offered stakeholders the opportunity to review the new agricultural policy, the National Agricultural Transformation and Innovation Plan (NATIP), and discuss the processes’ implementation vehicles.

“The current administration, under the supervision of President Muhammadu Buhari, is keen on creating an enabling environment for the private sector to lead the recovery of the agricultural sector,” said Mr Nanono. “At the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, we remain resolute in our support for strategic private sector incursions that will provide the much-needed infrastructure, systems, control processes, and oversight.”

Similarly, the Minister of State for Agriculture and Rural Development, Mustapha Shehuri, noted that the summit’s theme was apt, saying it will further accelerate the discussion that would illuminate the pathway to national food security.

Mr Shehuri, represented by Karima Babangida, a director at the Federal Department of Agriculture, added that to have a sustainable food system, Nigeria must overcome the challenges of poor quality food supplies, hunger, and malnutrition, etc.

(NAN)