Gilbert Ekugbe
The federal government and the Nigerian Agro Input Dealers Association (NAIDA) have agreed to enforce strict compliance of sales and distribution of certified and approved inputs in the country.
Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Mr. Abubakar Kyari who disclosed in Abuja when the President of NAIDA, Mr. Kabir Umar Fara, and his team paid him a courtesy visit.
He explained that the move would enhance the need to adhere strictly to global standards in the nation’s quest to achieve improved nutrition and food security.
According to the minister, the partnership would ensure that products supplied would meet the prescribed standards in terms of quality and quantity to ensure food sufficiency while emphasising on the need for the association to sell only certified and approved products sourced from the registered input producers.
He, therefore, charged the association to come up with policies and programmes that would checkmate adulteration of products, urging farmers to use and apply the entire inputs in line with the best agronomic practices for maximum productivities.
Earlier, Fara revealed that the ministry has also deployed foot soldiers in each of the states to ensure compliance.
He said: “Now, there are sales permit issued by the ministry, if you do not have sales permit and you are guilty in any of the sales of our inputs, you would be arrested immediately.”
The NAIDA is an umbrella of input distributors in Nigeria to farmers, including fertilizers, organic and inorganic, seeds, petrol chemicals and farm implements.
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