In order to guarantee a surplus of rice production for export, food security, and job creation, the federal government launched the Competitive African Rice Platform. According to the statement, the NRDS-II was created after the first phase of the NRDS-I, which was successfully implemented between 2009 and 2019, was completed.
This was revealed in the keynote speech given by Mustapha Shehuri, the Minister of State for Agriculture and Rural Development, during the Abuja launch of the second phase of the rice development strategy.
He explained that the national paddy rice production increased significantly toward the self-sufficiency aim of the Federal Government based on the gains of the NRDS-I in 2020.
A 10-year plan called the NRDS-II paper aims to give guidance for the development of the rice subsector to achieve the government’s goals of self-sufficiency in rice production, food and nutrition security, employment creation and production of surplus for export. “He said the document was adopted at the 4th National Council of Agriculture, which was held by all stakeholders, with support from the Competitive Africa Rice Platform.
