-Deborah Akinyosoye
The Nigeria Government, through the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (FMAFS) and Fundação Getulio Vargas (FGV) of Brazil, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, to advance private sector development in fertiliser production, hybrid seed technology, and agricultural finance.
The MoU was signed on behalf of the government by the Permanent Secretary of FMAFS, Mr Temitope Fashedemi, and the President of FGV, Professor Carlos Ivan Simonsen Leal, at FGV Headquarters in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on the sidelines of the G20 Leaders’ Summit.
A statement issued by Abiodun Oladunjoye, Director, Information and Public Relations, State House, explained that the agreement marked a new phase of strategic collaboration between Nigeria and FGV, the Green Imperative Project (GIP) lead implementer, one of the largest international agricultural technology transfer initiatives.
Conceived in 2018, GIP is a 1.2 billion dollar cooperative effort between Brazil and Nigeria, designed to modernise Nigeria’s agricultural sector through Brazilian expertise in tropical agriculture.
According to the statement, “Since the MoU was conceived in 2018, both parties have engaged in many meaningful discussions to advance its design and implementation.
“The project, supported by Deutsche Bank, aims to deliver transformative agricultural technologies and knowledge transfer over its 10-year duration.”
Over the next five years, the project will identify and support one agribusiness in Nigeria’s 774 local government areas with technical and financial resources, driving sustainable development and economic growth.
“This partnership paves the way for Brazil to engage with Nigeria’s dynamic and rapidly growing agricultural sector. Together with FGV, we are poised to unlock the potential of private sector investment in key areas critical to our food security,” Fashedemi said at the signing ceremony.
Under the MOU, private-sector projects on fertiliser production, hybrid seed technology and agricultural financing are projected to attract $4.3 billion in private-sector investment.
Senior members of Nigeria’s presidency, officials of FMAFS and FGV’s leadership attended the signing ceremony.