President Muhammadu Buhari has said that the Federal Government remains committed to Nigeria’s goal of achieving food security.

The President said this today during his speech to mark the country’s 59th Independence Anniversary in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory.

According to Buhari, “Our journey to food security and self-sufficiency is well underway. We have made remarkable progress in almost all segments of the agriculture value chain, from fertilizers to rice, to animal feed production”

“We shall sustain these policies to ensure additional investments are channeled, thereby creating more jobs in the sector. We must not go back to the days of importing food and thereby exporting jobs” He added

The President who lamented the past government’s over-reliance on the oil sector stressed that the Federal Government was committed to the diversification of Nigeria’s economy.

“Regrettably, previous governments abandoned the residual Investment-driven Non-Oil Sector, which constituted 40% of Gross Domestic Product and comprised agriculture, livestock, agro-processing, arts, entertainment, mining, and manufacturing activities that provide millions of jobs for able-bodied Nigerians and utilize locally available raw materials and labor for production.

“To address this imbalance, our commitment to achieving economic diversification has been at the heart of our economic strategies under the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, which I launched on the 5th of April, 2017.” He said

The President revealed that the Special Intervention Program of the Federal Government which includes the Home- Grown School Feeding Program will now be supervised by the newly created Ministry for Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development for easier implementation.

“Our ongoing N500 billion Special Intervention Programme continues to target these vulnerable groups, through the Home-grown School Feeding Programme, Government Economic Empowerment Programme, N-Power Job Creation Programme, loans for traders and artisans, Conditional Cash Transfers to the poorest families and social housing scheme.

“To institutionalize these impactful programs, we created the Ministry for Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management, and Social Development which shall consolidate and build on our achievements to date. To the beneficiaries of these programs, I want to reassure you that our commitment to social inclusion will only increase.” He noted

Buhari urged Nigerians to join in the fight against corruption by reporting culprits in all sectors of the economy as this is the only way to achieving the much talked about transformation (change).

“The blight of Corruption is fighting back. Nevertheless, this is a battle that we shall see-through and this is a war, which we shall win by the Grace of God

“I will also call upon all Nigerians, from every walk of life, to combat corruption at every turn. By choosing to question and confront corrupt practices, by reporting unethical practices or through whistleblowing.” The President said

SOURCE: AGRONIGERIA