Introduction
Federal ministry of agriculture Nigeria is the department of ministry of Nigerial that primarily deal with the agriculture development in Nigeria. This department was established in the year 1966 in need of
agricultural development in Nigeria. Federal ministry of agriculture Nigeria consists of five sub departments. These are fisheries,
agricultural research, agriculture and national resources, forestry and
veterinary research.
Nigeria has the congenial climate, fertile soil, huge manpower and resources which are the necessary factors for good
agricultural production. Nigeria also has that potential to provide raw materials for the need of the industry.
Indeed, Nigeria has the
climatic conditions, soil, water resources and available manpower sufficient not only to feed its own population but also to make it a significant food exporter. There is also a tremendous potential for crops that provide raw materials for industry.
Striking features of Federal ministry of agriculture Nigeria
Some of the
prominent activities of Federal ministry of agriculture Nigeria are:
Research, agricultural policies, and planning and management
Research
The main objective of
agricultural research is high yielding of agricultural products. Some other fields of agricultural research are controlling pests, improvement the quality of food crops and utilization of technology.
- Tree crops research: The prime objective of tree crop research is to increase the high yielding capacity of tree crops like rubber, oil palm, cocoa etc.
- Livestock research: The live stock research work is primarily based on poultry farms.
- Research on soil: Fertility of the soil is one of the main issue behind agricultural development and that is why Federal ministry of agriculture Nigeria instituted a research department for improving the fertility of the soil.
Agricultural policies
The federal ministry of agriculture Nigeria formulated some
agricultural policies to look after the agricultural growth and agricultural prospect of Nigeria. The objectives of these agricultural policies are acquisition of self-reliance, increase the high yielding capacity of crops, increase the productivity of good quality, high yielding exportable crops, modernization of agricultural activities, creation of emplyment opportunity etc.
Planning and management
Federal ministry of agriculture Nigeria has planned and adopted some
management policies which include the implementation of fertilizer policy, managing and supervising the quality control regulation, looking for the promotion of organic fertilizer etc.