Post by Trade facilitator on Jun 12, 2022 18:46:15 GMT 1
African Development Bank (AfDB) To Help Nigeria Return To e-Wallet System In Agriculture - Analysis Of Progress So Far
What is the e-wallet system and what does it represent in Nigeria?
The e-wallet is an electronic system that uses vouchers for the purchase and distribution of agricultural inputs by farmers in Nigeria.
Why is it that we do not hear about the program anymore? What happened, what has been the problem and why is it that all the effort that the government put into it has failed?
The African Development Bank (AfDB) says it will help Nigeria return to the electronic wallet system of fund distribution to farmers to boost agricultural production.
Adesina, The Managing Director of the bank disclosed this at a meeting with newsmen ahead of the bank’s 2022 annual meetings in Accra, Ghana.
How did this scheme come about in Nigeria?
The system was initially designed by Adesina when he was Agriculture Minister in Nigeria and it helped cut out the Middleman and give farmers direct access to the funding required for their farming activities.
Farmers who were eligible for these vouchers must be 18 years of age and above, his/her bio-data must have been captured by the government, own a cell phone with a registered SIM and have a minimum of N50 credit on it so that the government can track who got fertilizer, when they got it, and how much was paid.
The system worked nearly perfectly until the regime under which Mr. Adesina was serving was replaced by the regime of President Muhammadu Buhari.
After the regime took over the system went into comatose, the country went back into the old system of wastages and corruption.
Adesina disclosed that during his time as Minister of Agriculture, the system enabled the Federal Government to register 14.5 million farmers and reached them directly with inputs; notably seeds and fertilizers through electronic coupons on their mobile phones.
He also added that AfDB will support Nigeria with a $30 million reallocated fund to be used for an emergency food plan to produce in the dry season.
"Nigerians need to go back and use the electronic wallet system that I developed when I was a Minister to get fertilizer straight to farmers and cut out all the middlemen.
"We are going to help the government to do that because when farmers have quality seeds and fertilizers they can rapidly triple food production", he said.
"In Nigeria we have provided $540 million for special agro-industrial processing zones in seven States including the Federal Capital Territory.
"That will allow Nigeria to have special zones where you can have agro- processing value addition and increased competitiveness of Agriculture.
"We are not alone, we put in $170 million, and others put in money such as the Islamic Development Bank and other Partners," he added.
Under the GES programme, the Federal Government was expected to provide 25 per cent, the state also provided 25 per cent, while the farmer paid 50 per cent for each bag of the product supplied to them.
According to the National Association of Nigerian Traders (NANTS) in 2015, with the GES, via the e-wallet at 50 per cent subsidy, 1.2 million farmers reportedly bought a maximum of two bags of fertilizer in 120 days.
HOWEVER, despite the loud applause that complimented the GES programme, wherein with just an SMS via their phones, farmers could access their subsidized farm inputs, since 2015 when this administration assumed office, the reverse has been the case, as the initiative was stopped abruptly.
Our company is one of the best Agro-Export Business in Nigeria today. We train individuals and corporate organizations on how to do Export Business the right way; if you are interested, please contact the admin of this forum now for further details.
What is the e-wallet system and what does it represent in Nigeria?
The e-wallet is an electronic system that uses vouchers for the purchase and distribution of agricultural inputs by farmers in Nigeria.
Why is it that we do not hear about the program anymore? What happened, what has been the problem and why is it that all the effort that the government put into it has failed?
The African Development Bank (AfDB) says it will help Nigeria return to the electronic wallet system of fund distribution to farmers to boost agricultural production.
Adesina, The Managing Director of the bank disclosed this at a meeting with newsmen ahead of the bank’s 2022 annual meetings in Accra, Ghana.
How did this scheme come about in Nigeria?
The system was initially designed by Adesina when he was Agriculture Minister in Nigeria and it helped cut out the Middleman and give farmers direct access to the funding required for their farming activities.
Farmers who were eligible for these vouchers must be 18 years of age and above, his/her bio-data must have been captured by the government, own a cell phone with a registered SIM and have a minimum of N50 credit on it so that the government can track who got fertilizer, when they got it, and how much was paid.
The system worked nearly perfectly until the regime under which Mr. Adesina was serving was replaced by the regime of President Muhammadu Buhari.
After the regime took over the system went into comatose, the country went back into the old system of wastages and corruption.
Adesina disclosed that during his time as Minister of Agriculture, the system enabled the Federal Government to register 14.5 million farmers and reached them directly with inputs; notably seeds and fertilizers through electronic coupons on their mobile phones.
He also added that AfDB will support Nigeria with a $30 million reallocated fund to be used for an emergency food plan to produce in the dry season.
"Nigerians need to go back and use the electronic wallet system that I developed when I was a Minister to get fertilizer straight to farmers and cut out all the middlemen.
"We are going to help the government to do that because when farmers have quality seeds and fertilizers they can rapidly triple food production", he said.
"In Nigeria we have provided $540 million for special agro-industrial processing zones in seven States including the Federal Capital Territory.
"That will allow Nigeria to have special zones where you can have agro- processing value addition and increased competitiveness of Agriculture.
"We are not alone, we put in $170 million, and others put in money such as the Islamic Development Bank and other Partners," he added.
Under the GES programme, the Federal Government was expected to provide 25 per cent, the state also provided 25 per cent, while the farmer paid 50 per cent for each bag of the product supplied to them.
According to the National Association of Nigerian Traders (NANTS) in 2015, with the GES, via the e-wallet at 50 per cent subsidy, 1.2 million farmers reportedly bought a maximum of two bags of fertilizer in 120 days.
HOWEVER, despite the loud applause that complimented the GES programme, wherein with just an SMS via their phones, farmers could access their subsidized farm inputs, since 2015 when this administration assumed office, the reverse has been the case, as the initiative was stopped abruptly.
Our company is one of the best Agro-Export Business in Nigeria today. We train individuals and corporate organizations on how to do Export Business the right way; if you are interested, please contact the admin of this forum now for further details.
