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The Nigerian Federal Government has incorporated Agricultural Insurance into its National Agricultural Growth Scheme Agro-Pocket (NAGS-AP) programme to mitigate agricultural risks and ensure food security.
The Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security, Sen. Aliyu Abdullahi, stated this at a workshop on the implementation of the NAGS-AP programme on Wednesday, August 21, 2024, in Abuja.
The NAGS-AP, a Federal Government's intervention programme for farmers, commenced in the 2023 dry season farming with wheat cultivation.
Abudullahi said the workshop was organised to educate stakeholders on the features and benefits of agricultural insurance for Nigerian farmers.
"We have convened to deliberate and reach a consensus on integrating agricultural insurance into the NAGS-AP programme, which commenced during the 2023 dry season farming with wheat cultivation.
So far, we have been fortunate to experience favourable weather conditions, leading to a bountiful harvest."
Our goal is to safeguard the investments and interventions made by the government and our financing partner, the African Development Bank (AfDB), through the NAGS-AP program.
This is crucial to ensure the sustainability and security of our local food systems, particularly in light of our expanding population.
Nigeria is facing serious existential threats from climate change that are impacting the country's local food systems. It is crucial to integrate insurance as a key component of the NAGS-AP programme to ensure sustainability and food security.
The Nigerian Agricultural Insurance Corporation (NAIC) is ready to continue partnering with stakeholders in the agricultural and other sectors, providing sound insurance and risk management expertise to reduce risks and improve national agricultural output as well as food security.
The NAGS-AP event was organized to expand the scheme's operational horizon to cater to the interests of farmers and other relevant stakeholders along the production chain.
