Oil prices have fallen and many nations are facing recession or even depression. For Nigeria that relies heavily on oil revenue, it is a dire situation.
He discussed the government’s recent monetary and fiscal policies, and how the country can quickly take advantage of the agriculture sector to help the economy and ensure food sufficiency in the country. Excerpts: The federal government also, in provided an initial intervention of N15 billion to support the national response to contain and control the spread of this COVID-19 virus. In addition to this, the petrol pump price has been reduced from N145/liter to N125/liter to cushion the effect of rising prices of essential & food commodities.
PT: Clearly, this is an emergency situation now. How best can the government turn the agric sector around to make rapid returns that could significantly help the economy?As much as I know, nothing is impossible to do if we are really determined to do it. I can quite recall that in 2018 the prices of foodstuff drastically declined because we were all determined to go back to the farm rather the relying on the market because of a hard time we all faced in 2017.
· Improved maintenance and provision of rural infrastructures to minimize post-harvest losses and enhance product evacuation.