ABOUT US

The Maize Value Chain is one of the value chains in the Federal Department of Agriculture of the Ministry.

The value chain came on-board with the inception of the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA) programme in 2012, with an overall goal of increasing maize production from 8.0 million metric tons in 2011 to 15million tons in 2015 and ultimately to 20 million metric tons in Nigeria in the long run.

The mandate of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is to be a significant net provider of food to the global community, through the promotion of Agricultural Development and Management of Natural Resources in a value chain approach to achieve sustainable food security, enhance farm income and reduce poverty.

The Federal Department of Agriculture (FDA) has the primary mandate of promoting the production of food and fibre, and improving farm productivity, income and the quality of life of rural dwellers.

The overall goal of Maize Value Chain is to increase maize production from 8.0 million metric tons (in 2011) to 15million tons in 2015 and ultimately to 20 million metric tons in Nigeria in the long run. To achieve this, dependable maize production technologies are available while a favourable policy environment that promotes agricultural and overall economic growth and job creation are being put in place.

The maize Transformation Action Plan is formulated to achieve the following:

v Commercialization and deployment of high-yielding stress tolerant and nutrient efficient hybrids and varieties;

v Promotion of optimal fertilizer usage and complementary crop management options;

v Modification of policies that impede private sector growth; and

v Identification and development of new uses for maize to drive demand and create additional markets.

Maize is a staple food crop in Nigeria whose average grain yield of about 2.2 tons/ha (FAO, 2011) and estimated national demand of 12 million tons per annum is yet to be met. This insufficiency and low returns were attributed to limited availability of good quality improved seeds, low rate of adoption of improved varieties and agronomic technologies, appropriate fertilizers and other inputs. So to attain the stated main goal, the Value Chain targeted these production challenges and articulated the following specific objectives: To-

(i)   commercialize and deploy high yielding, stress-tolerant and nutrient-efficient maize hybrids and open-pollinated varieties (OPVs) to farmers;

(ii)    promote optimal fertilizer usage with complimentary crop and resource management practices to enhance productivity;

(iii)    create additional market and to effectively link producers to markets;

(iv)    create a minimum of 600,000jobs along the value chain and,

(v)     to conserve and earn foreign exchange from maize.

        To realize these objectives, dependable maize technologies and favourable policy environments that enhance growth and create jobs were put in place.