AN ANALYSIS OF PLATEAU, BENUE, NASARAWA AND BAUCHI STATES’ 2016 PROPOSED BUDGET FOR AGRICULTURE - The National Association of Nigerian Traders NANTS

The present government of Nigeria is led by a new political party and leadership – the All Progressive Congress (APC), with a slogan of ‘change’. The party’s vision of economic revival (especially against the backdrop of downward fortunes occasioned by slide in oil revenue) is anchored on agriculture and solid minerals sectors. For this purpose, majority of Nigerians believe that agriculture which used to be the mainstay of the nation’s economy before the evolution of oil would be given adequate and special attention.

 Although every state in Nigeria has capacity to utilize agriculture as a sector for economic sustenance, the three States of Benue, Nasarawa and Plateau located in the North central zone of Nigeria could be deemed to be outstanding and perhaps regarded as the ‘food basket of the nation’. This assertion is owing to the high volume of food and other agricultural produce that are harvested from these states and which makes the states a gathering point for marketing and distribution of food stuffs. In this regard therefore and coupled with the fact that these three states are controlled by the APC, observers are of the expectation that budgetary allocation to and overall investment in agriculture would be given a prominent place.