Agric Ministry @ #NCSEnugu2014, Seeks IT Experts Support

Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) has identified the information and communication (ICT) professionals as critical stakeholders in achieving the nation’s Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA).

Speaking at a 3-Day national conference organized by Nigeria Computer Society in Enugu (NCS), Mrs. Ibukun Odusote, permanent secretary at FMARD, said the Ministry in the last three years has discovered Nigeria has huge potentials that will grow the economy via agriculture hence the need for ICT experts develop solutions that will spur the sector to a greater height.

Odusote said, “We have the land to cultivate and have food in abundance; we have water to grow fish that can feed the whole of West Africa and beyond.

"We have brains, especially young people that are leaving universities without employment. Thus, it is totally unacceptable that majority of our resources on foreign exchange will be utilized in importing food such as Rice, when we have Rice even in Enugu State, Ebonyi and other parts of the country.

“So, Mr President’s wisdom he started Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA) being championed by Honorable Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina and supported by myself, the Permanent Secretary. Our target is to create wealth, create future for our people. By 2015, we would have created 3.5 million jobs. Already, we have created 2.5 million jobs within the three years of ATA”.

Reacting to recent allegations of fertilizer distribution scam leveled against her and some senior officers of the Ministry, she said that ICT apparatuses deployed in the system would vindicate them.

She said, “Recently, there was an alleged fertilizer scam where some people said the Permanent Secretary and officials of the Ministry catered away fertilizer worth N2.4 billion, selling same to neighboring countries and smiling to the bank. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) actually invited me for some questions.

“Our joy is that it is not business as usual at the ministry. We are operating what we call Growth Enhancement Scheme (GES). Under GES, we created an electronic platform that enables farmers to register for even distribution of fertilizers.

“The process has been relieved out of the hands of government; not only that it is being managed by the private sector the e-platform has no human intervention. So, were able to overcome that challenges, because all fertilizer goes out through the Agro Dealers (AD).

“The AD would only have information on their phones; likewise the farmers get information on their phones. When they come to the centre they pay through Point of Sale (PoS). Nigerians will be amazed that even in the hinterlands where it is assumed there is no connectivity; the farmers get information and respond as necessary.

“For those that pay cash, government does not go to them for collections. We get information on our systems. We have a system that updates us on how much farmers have remitted. That will help us know how much government has to pay to the Agro Dealers. When we brought out our records and facts, no body could say anything.

“There are a lot we are doing applying Information Technology (IT). The Minister of Agric has shown much passion about seeing how IT and Agric can work together. For instance, we are partnering Columbian University on a revolutionary test for soil health. The farmers can actually take equipment right to the farm location and test the soil to determine the crop such soil is suitable for. So, the soil doctor is working.

“I am sure we are thinking towards IT for Agric development because the ICT industry has trained us in that direction, we need for collaborations. I want to encourage the young ones in the profession that please, lets begin to think outside the box. We need to do a lot more on the path of electronic application in various sectors.

“The path we want IT in Nigeria go is on local technological advancement. I am pleading with the young ones that the farmers who are using these applications will need access to connectivity. They need skill and infrastructure leverage on IT”.

She added that the trend entails developing IT across board, since all processes in agriculture can be automated.

The Permanent Secretary hinted that each new grounds broken in agriculture is an opportunity for IT to play a key role, yet, Nigeria is yet to optimize these opportunities.

“I therefore urge you, especially members of this great society-Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) to invest in IT-agricultural based ventures,” she said.