Abuja: The National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF) has commended the private sector, development partners, and other stakeholders for their commitment to invest in reducing post-harvest losses in Nigeria’s food system. Mr. Mohammed Ibrahim, Executive Secretary of NADF, made this known during an interactive session with newsmen on Tuesday.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, Mr. Ibrahim recalled that the recent Africa Food Systems Forum held in Dakar, Senegal, from Aug. 31 to Sept. 5, provided a platform to highlight the challenges facing food systems across the region, with post-harvest losses identified as a common problem. He mentioned that post-harvest losses remain one of the major challenges in the country, accounting for as high as 60 percent in some value chains.
Ibrahim noted that investors at the forum had shown optimism and interest in investing in Nigeria’s post-harvest system, stressing that addressing the issue was key to strengthening the nation’s food security. He explained that governments across Africa had taken steps to reduce underinvestment in agriculture, but more needed to be done to attract private capital.
The executive secretary stated that NADF was established to provide holistic funding to the agricultural sector, focusing on farmer productivity and profitability. He added that Nigeria was agriculturally blessed across various regions and demographics, but emphasized the need to harness its potential for sustainable growth.
Funding is critical in every sector that seeks to grow and achieve its potential, according to Ibrahim. He outlined that their mandate cuts across the entire agricultural value chain, including research, to ensure an environment where funding flows. Furthermore, he mentioned that NADF is deploying blended finance, guarantees, concessionary loans, and targeted funding to catalyze agricultural and industrial growth.
Ibrahim listed access to land, markets, and skills as key building blocks to enhance farmers’ productivity, noting that these approaches validated NADF’s current interventions.