Vice President Kashim Shettima, on Monday in Rome, said the President Bola Tinubu-led administration had mobilised over half a billion dollars for the nation’s food system transformation.
According to a statement signed on Tuesday by the State House Director of Information, Office of the Vice President, Olusola Abiola, Shettima announced this at the UN Food Systems Summit in Rome, Italy, adding that the goal was to overhaul Nigeria’s food systems.
The statement was titled, ‘Tinubu administration mobilises half a billion dollars for Nigeria’s food system transformation – VP Shettima.’
Speaking at the event declared open by the United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, the VP outlined Federal Government’s plans for the funds.
“They are set to be channelled towards innovation finance for food system transformation, the development of Nigeria’s agro value chain, and our Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones programmes,” he said.
Shettima stated that the funds were secured through a combination of “domestic resources, multilateral development banks, international financial institutions, climate funds and leading agro-businesses.”
“The VCDP is co-funded by the Nigerian government and the International Fund for Agricultural Development and has empowered vulnerable farmers and youth to engage in commercial partnerships with some of the biggest food processing and marketing firms in the world, such as OLAM, a world-leading agri-business company operating in over 60 countries with an annual revenue of about $39.8bn,” the Vice President added.
The Vice President also told his audience that in the wake of fuel subsidy removal in Nigeria, the government embarked on the immediate release of grains and fertiliser.
He added partly, “President Tinubu declared a state of emergency in food security and took it as a livelihood item within the National Security Council.”
