Private sector interest is on the
rise
There has never been such interest
from the private sector and especially
from international investors in Africa’s
agro-sector as there is currently.
International investors seeking
alternative outlets to Asia and Latin
America are turning to Africa.
Financing options are on the
increase
Almost everywhere you look, there is a
co-operative or organization leveraging
financing from the federal government
or state government or other
international organizations to finance
agricultural projects and
entrepreneurship.
The opportunities are many
In the upstream sub-sector, three (3)
areas of input are critical to improving
agricultural production – certified
seeds, fertilizers and mechanization.
In the area of certified seeds, a 2014
report from the World Bank estimated
that only 5 to 10% of cultivated land in
Nigeria was planted with certified seeds
and only 10% of farmers use certified
seeds. According to the report, “about
7.2% of maize, 4.8% of rice, 2 % of
13 The Export Brief | MAY 2018 | IEOM-NG.ORG
cowpea, 1.8% of wheat, and 1.7% of
sorghum in Nigeria was cultivated using
certified seed varieties in the 2011 and
2012 cropping seasons”.
About Certified seeds
Certified seeds are the product of a
production process designed to deliver
specific plant breeding achievements
to farmers and the food industry.
In other words, it is true-to-type. True-
to-type means all the benefits
developed by the plant breeder are
retained as the seed is multiplied over
a number of specific number of
generations (to the certified seed
stage) from the small amount of seed
developed by the plant breeder.
There are currently over 150 certified
seeds companies in Nigeria.
Nigeria’s commercial seed industry is
estimated to only be able to supply 2 to
5% of farmers’ actual seed needs
annually. By any standard, that
represents a significant shortage of
certified seeds’ availability in Nigeria.