The Federal Government is planning to re‑introduce a fertilizer subsidy for farmers, according to recent information. The programme would be financed by the African Development Bank and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). This disclosure appears in the IMF’s “Selected Issues” paper on Nigeria, prepared by a staff team as background documentation for the periodic consultation with the country. The paper notes that the information reflects the situation as of the report’s completion on 12 January 2023.
The report explains that the government originally launched an e‑voucher scheme from 2011 to 2015, allowing about 12–14 million farmers to obtain subsidised NPK or urea fertilizer and improved seeds from private‑sector input retailers. The initiative was abandoned in 2015 after a sharp decline in government revenue caused by falling oil prices and worsening macro‑economic conditions.
With recent improvements in revenue, the Federal Government is now considering reviving the subsidy to make fertilizer more affordable for farmers. A new programme, centred on agricultural special processing zones and financed by the African Development Bank and IFAD, aims to re‑introduce the subsidy.
The report also highlights that the Central Bank of Nigeria has been an active lender to the agriculture sector, supporting low‑interest loans to farmers as part of the government’s broader effort to boost agricultural inputs.
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