Business
Nigeria’s annual post-harvest loss hits $12bn
Nigeria incurs $12 billion in post-harvest loss every year in its agriculture industry on account of poor transportation system and storage infrastructures among other factors, the Nigerian government said on Thursday.
The managing director of the Nigeria Incentive-based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL), Aliyu Abdulhameed, made the assertion at a meeting in Abuja, aimed at deploying Secured Agricultural Commodity Transport & Storage Corridor (SATS-C) policy to combat post-harvest losses in the country.
Post-harvest losses in Africa’s biggest economy vary from between 5 and 20 per cent for grains, experts say, and the rate for perishables is significantly higher, with losses for fruits, vegetables and tubers coming to between 50 and 60 per cent.
The SATS-C will cut post-harvest losses by 50 per cent and, in so doing, accelerate agriculture’s contribution to Nigeria’s gross domestic product by 5 per cent after rollout, Abdulhameed said.
Read also: Nigerian govt to borrow $1.2bn from Brazil to finance agriculture
The policy is similarly anticipated to scale down prices of food, generate 126,000 direct and indirect jobs, and boost the potential of complying with standard practices for better access to industrial, consumer and export markets.
“NIRSAL is reaching out to enabler institutions, driving necessary dialogues and championing advocacy to support the FMITI in the development and implementation of the SATS-C policy in Nigeria,” he said.
Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment Adeniyi Adebayo said in his remark the policy would enhance a complete structuring of nodal service platforms to support smooth route-to-market operation for agricultural commodities, a move expected to minimise post-harvest losses.
“It is expected to facilitate the movement of goods from the primary source through a safe secure channel to three critical points: domestic consumer; Industries; and export market,” he said.
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