AGRICULTURAL SECTOR REFORMS THAT ELIMINATED FERTILISER FRAUD IN NIGERIA...

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   Problem: As at 2010, Nigeria was ranked as one of the highest food importing countries in the world, spending about ₦1.3 trillion annually on the importation of wheat, rice, sugar and fish. There was huge historical fertilizer fraud and only 11% of farmers were getting the fertilisers distributed.
   
   Reform Actions:
   - Growth Enhancement Support Scheme (GES)
   - Food Value Chains in Priority Crops
   - Stronger Private Sector Participation in Agriculture
   - Better Financing of Agriculture, including the Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL) scheme
   - Setting up Marketing Corporations
   - Removing the Monopoly on Agriculture Insurance
   - Developing Staple Crop Processing Zones

• Main Achievements: The Growth Enhancement Support Scheme has virtually eliminated fertiliser fraud and has improved fertiliser distribution across the country. The innovative e- wallet system reached 14 million genuine farmers in just three years. The reforms therefore reduced unnecessary bureaucracy and red tape in distribution of agricultural inputs. Again, there was the creation of US$5 billion in new investment in the agriculture sector and there are prospects for more investment. Furthermore, there was a decline in food and animal import bill from ₦2.4 trillion in 2011 to ₦696 billion trillion in 2013. The Federal Government has also boosted mechanised farming by providing ₦50 billion.
  
  Key Challenges: (a) initial difficulty with the mobile handset system of sharing fertilisers, and problematic Global System for Mobile (GSM) availability in remote areas; (b) low adoption of fertiliser usage; and (c) difficulty in attracting the younger generation to farming as a career. 
  
  
  Reference:  Public Service Reforms in Nigeria (1999-2014) - A Comprehensive Review
  
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