Youth, Women farmers will drive Agric Sector Growth – Kyari
The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Sen. Abubakar Kyari has stated that active participation of youth and women farmers in agriculture will fast-track development, boost production, revitalize agribusiness, as well as enhance food and nutrition security.
The Minister stated this during a working visit to D’More Food and Spices, the Food Processing Division of Jet Farms Agro Solution Ltd, an agribusiness enterprise owned and managed by the Nigerian Youth Farmers, at Technology Incubation Hub, Lafia, Nasarawa State, recently.
Kyari assured that the Ministry would provide the strategic policy backbone for transforming agriculture into a tech-enabled, youth – and women driven sector, promote mechanization, digital agriculture, and research – commercialization linkages, among others.
He highlighted that the initiative would propel the creation of an enabling environment for youth and women farmers in agribusiness to maximize their potential in production, packaging, marketing, and distribution in the agriculture ecosystem.
The Minster revealed that in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda in the Agric Sector, the Ministry would continue to support Jet Farms and other emerging youth, and women-led agribusiness ventures across the country.
He inspected a range of products under the company’s D’More Spices Brand, including curry, thyme, chilli pepper, and rice.
In his welcome address, Team Lead, Tobi Jeremiah Olanrewaju, stated that the ‘’food processing arm of Jet Farms and Agro Solutions Ltd, was born out of one simple but urgent mission: to stop the painful waste of farmers’ harvests, to create dignified jobs for young people and women, and to take the bold flavors of Nigeria to tables across the world’’.
According to him, ‘’every year, smallholder farmers lose up to half their harvest because of a lack of storage and processing facilities. At D’More, we saw both a tragedy and an opportunity.
‘’By processing ginger, turmeric, thyme, curry, chili, crayfish, and rice into premium-quality spices and food products, we are extending shelf life, creating value, and turning what could have been waste into both income for farmers and nourishment for families’’.
‘’More than that, we are showing that agriculture is not just survival, it is prosperity and pride’’, Olanrewaju said .
He appealed for single-digit financing from institutions like the Bank of Industry, Bank of Agriculture, and other intervention programmes.
The highlight of the working visit was the inspection of the company’s facility, which includes the raw materials store, processing room, and finished products section, a statement from Ezeaja Ikemefuna, the Ministry’s Assistant Director, Information disclosed
