![]() ![]() And 18 million hectares of land classified as permanent pasture, for livestock production. ![]() ![]() Most parts of the country experience-rich soil, well-distributed rainfall, not to mention the warm year-round temperatures. Nigeria is very blessed with agricultural resources, a large expanse of land estimated at 91 million hectares (1990) of which 81 million hectares are arable. Large-scale agriculture is not common. Agriculture contributed 32% to GDP in 2001 Most of the 20 million hectares covered by forests and woodlands are believed to have agricultural potentials.Īgricultural holdings are small and scattered, and farming is carried out with simple tools. 18 million hectares were classified as permanent pasture, but had the potential to support crops. Much of this land was farmed under the bush fallow system, whereby land is left idle for a period of time to allow natural regeneration of soil fertility. 42 percent of the cultivable area was farmed. The usage of inorganic fertilizers was therefore promoted by the Nigerian government in the 1970s. In 1990, 82 million hectares out of Nigeria’s total land area of about 91 million hectares were found to be arable. Food output however declined after independence, although, many parts of Sub-Saharan Africa were fertile and potentially productive, per capita food out declined, grain imports then increased more than seven times. Twenty-five years later, it was almost a complete reversal with food items accounting for over 50 percent of imports. These have all contributed to low agricultural productivity (average of 1.2 metric tons of cereals/ha) with high postharvest losses and waste in Nigeria.įood export accounted for more than 70 percent of the GNP of Nigeria at independence. This is coupled with a high dependence on rainfed agriculture which has made the Agricultural Production System highly vulnerable to adverse seasonal variations. On the other hand, the Nigerian Agricultural sector has encountered several challenges ranging from an obsolete land tenure system that limits access to land (1.8 ha/farming household), a very low level of irrigation development (less than 1 percent of cropped land under irrigation), limited adoption of research findings and technologies, high cost of farm inputs, poor access to credit, inefficient fertilizer procurement and distribution, insufficient storage facilities and poor access to markets and more recently, changes in average temperatures, rainfall, climate extremes and infestation of pests and diseases causing organisms precipitated by climate change pose great challenge to agriculture. The sector is being transformed by commercialization at the small, medium and large-scale enterprise levels. The Agriculture sector contributed 29.25% to overall real GDP during the third quarter of 2019. The largest driver of the sector remains Crop Production as it accounts for 91.6% of the sector in the third quarter of 2019 with a quarterly growth which stood at 44.12%. In the third quarter of 2019, the sector grew by 14.88% year-on-year in nominal terms with a decline of 3.44% points from the third quarter of 2018. The Agricultural sector is made up of four sub-sectors: Crop Production, Livestock, Forestry and Fishing. It is the main source of livelihood for most Nigerians. As reported by the FAO, agriculture remains the foundation of the Nigerian economy, despite the presence of oil in the country. Agriculture in Nigeria is a branch of the economy in Nigeria, providing employment for about 35% of the population as of 2020. ![]()
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