Rabat – Nigeria’s National Agricultural Lands Development Authority (NALDA) is sending young farmers to learn about crop production and animal husbandry, recognizing Morocco’s leading expertise in the domain.
The initiative is part of a new program called “Aggressive Food Production” that was initiated by NALDA and the Nigerian Ministry of Education, the Nigerian newspaper Tribune said on Wednesday.
It is also a continuation of the National Young Farmers Scheme that seeks to make agriculture appealing to youth, as well as training young farmers on modern agriculture and agribusiness to increase domestic food production and exportation.
The beneficiaries recently received their travel documents in Abuja. During the ceremony, Executive Secretary NALDA, Prince Paul Ikonne said that the program is sending 200 young Nigerians to countries with “strong expertise” such as Morocco and Israel to build “a new generation of farmers that would drive Nigeria’s agriculture.”
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As ambassadors of Nigeria, the program participants will represent the 36 states of the Nigerian federation in Morocco and Israel for six days.
After completing their training and returning back home, the beneficiaries will be asked to transfer the knowledge they accumulated throughout the experience to other farmers in their respective states. Universities will also provide logistical assistance to support the knowledge transfer process.
Some of the selected candidates have shared their excitement and expectations regarding the program. Grateful for being given such an opportunity, the beneficiaries have expressed a thirst for knowledge.
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The choice of Morocco as a training destination for young Nigerian farmers comes as no surprise, thanks to the North African country’s role in advancing the production and smart use of fertilizers in Nigeria to ensure the country’s food security over the long term.
Last year, Morocco and Nigeria concluded a win-win agreement that laid the ground for a $1.3 billion chemical plant that will produce ammonia and other fertilizers.
As Morocco needs natural gas to produce the ammonia essential for transforming phosphates into fertilizers, its partnership with Nigeria gives it access to one of the largest gas reserves in Africa.
The deal was part of a larger cooperation framework between the two African countries including the Morocco-Nigeria gas pipeline mega project.
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari welcomed the bilateral achievement, noting its intended role in making his country a “regional and global fertilizer power house.”
In 2021, OCP’s investments and projects in Nigeria have already increased local production capacity to over 5 million tonnes per year.
OCP’s operations extend to a variety of other countries across Africa, underpinning Morocco’s regional role in promoting sustainable agriculture to address structural issues such as poverty, malnutrition, and food insecurity.
