Posted on September, 9, 2019 at 10:27 am
THE African Development Bank and the African Fertiliser and Agribusiness Partnership (AFAP) have signed two grant agreements for the implementation of fertiliser trade credit guarantee projects in Nigeria and Tanzania.
The signing ceremony was scheduled to take place on the sidelines of the African Green Revolution Forum (AGRF) 2019 in Accra, Ghana on 5 September 2019.
The agreement aims to officially launch the two Africa Fertiliser Financing Mechanism (AFFM) trade credit guarantee projects in Nigeria and Tanzania respectively.
The African Fertiliser and Agribusiness Partnership will be the implementing partner operating in the two countries on behalf of the Africa Fertiliser Financing Mechanism, a special fund administered by the African Development Bank to unlock the financing of the fertiliser value chain in Africa.
The agreement was signed by: Dr. Jennifer Blanke, Vice President for Agriculture, Human and Social Development, African Development Bank Group Jason Scarpone, CEO, African Fertiliser and Agribusiness Partnership.
Under a two-year implementation plan, the projects will lead to the enhancement of Tanzania's and Nigeria's fertiliser importation and distribution capacity and will target 10 importers, 5 blenders/manufacturers, and 37 hub agro-dealers as direct beneficiaries, 520 retail agro-dealers as indirect beneficiaries and 700,000 smallholder farmers as final beneficiaries.
The projects will also contribute to achieving the objectives of the Bank's Feed Africa Strategy in the two countries.
Fertilisers contain chemical elements such as manure or mixture of nitrates that improves the growth of plants. They give nutrition to the crops. When added to soil or water, plants can develop tolerance against pests like weeds, insects and diseases.
The system of agriculture industry in Tanzania promotes the reliance on agrochemicals, both synthetic fertilisers and pesticides. Agriculture, which includes horticulture, continues to play a predominant role in Tanzanian economy since it contributes about over 45 per cent of the
Gross Domestic Product (GDP), generates about 60 per cent of the total export earnings and employs about 80 per cent of the labour force.
Source: IPP Media