For agriculture to develop in Nigeria, fertilisers, seeds and agro-chemicals dealers will have to be trained and certified by appropriate authorities.
The Chief of Party, Feed the Future Nigeria Agro-Inputs Project, Dr Kofi Debrah, made this assertion at the close of a programme in Abuja last Friday.
Dr Debrah said the quick passage of the Fertiliser Quality Control Bill would also help in regulating the production and sale of fertiliser in the country.
He said some agro-inputs dealers were trained by the Nigeria Agro-Inputs Project over the period of three years that the project lasted.
The dealers would in turn educate farmers on how to integrate new technologies to boost their yields.
He said most agro-inputs dealers are untrained and therefore lacked adequate knowledge on soil peculiarities and types of fertiliser to be applied by farmers.
He said fertiliser dealers should not only sell but also provide advisory services to farmers.
The USAID Nigeria Mission Director, Stephen Haykin, said 1,400 agro-inputs dealers and 4,000 farmers were introduced to new agricultural technology, including soil-and crop-specific fertiliser blend-based Urea deep placement technology.
He said the technology yielded impressive results, with rice yields doubling in Kwali Area Council of the FCT, and tripling in Omala LA in Kogi State.
By Taiwo Adeniyi
Daily Trust News
