The drop in food import bills from 3.40 billion dollars to 0.56 billion dollars, representing a drop of over 80 per cent over the last six years, is proof that President Muhammadu Buhari’s various interventions to boost food production and food safety in the country are yielding the desired results.

The Buhari Media Organisation (BMO) made this observation in reaction to the disclosure by the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Dr. Godwin Emefiele that the country was making huge savings from a reduction in food importation. The Governor was speaking at a stakeholders’ sensitisation workshop on the National Agricultural Sample Census in Abuja.

At the workshop which was organised to update Nigerians on the state of food production and successes recorded under the CBN’s interventions to boost agriculture and food production, it was revealed how the country’s fortune on food security has improved massively.

In a statement signed by its Chairman Niyi Akinsiju and Secretary Cassidy Madueke, BMO noted that it takes only a serious and focused leader like President Muhammadu Buhari to achieve this laudable feat within the said period and that the President at no point in time, left no one in doubt about his patriotism and sufficient capacity to sustain his various interventions to boost job creation, food self-sufficiency, and good nutrition for Nigerians.

‘It is gratifying to note that most of the agricultural interventions of the Buhari administration in the last six years have created jobs for millions of Nigerians. And this has brought about poverty reduction, reduction in food import bills and has saved the government hard-earned foreign exchange”.

BMO said now that successes are being recorded in this direction, it is incumbent on policymakers and stakeholders across every sector of the economy to redouble their efforts in whatever they are doing to strengthen the government’s efforts in improving agriculture and food production.

The group assured Nigerians that the current administration will continue to show a strong commitment to diversifying the economy through robust and aggressive agriculture policies as well as leaving a legacy of food security and good governance.

The group commended the CBN Governor and his team, and other major stakeholders in the agriculture sector for their commitment and for coming up with result-oriented policies to support the government’s efforts in boosting food production in the country.

BMO also encouraged Governors of the 36 States of the Federation to take a cue from President Buhari’s disposition towards agriculture by putting in place more viable and robust policies and funding support to drive agriculture and food production and sufficiency in their respective States.