Utafiti Sera: Evidence from two value chains

Successive governments in Nigeria have made job creation in agriculture a key policy target. In particular, attempts have been made to attract and retain women and youth in agriculture for the purpose of employment creation and boosting domestic food security.

“Reality of unemployment and underemployment is hardly fully captured.”

A study by Dr. Aremu F. A. supported by Partnership For African Social & Governance Research (PAS GR ) and Dutch Platforms on Inclusive Development (INCLUDE) revealed that while steady progress is being made in some value chains such as rice where Anchors Borrowers Programme (ABP) is boosting productive capacity of farmers and processors, employment creation in the other value chains like cotton-textile is still a long shot away.

According to Dr. Aremu F. A., an Associate Professor  in the Department of Political Science at the University of Ilorin notes that a modest dose of government support especially by providing enablers such as infrastructure is likely to unleash the job-creating potential of the clusters in the various value chains.

Field observation and interviews indicate abundant opportunities for employment creation in agriculture and agro-processing which are largely untapped despite government’s genuine effort.

Job-creation through Agro-industry-Nigeria