Reduce Land Reg. Cost, we need to grow food for the Future- Agric Minister

 Nigeria is poised to join a new alliance for global food security, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, has said.

Adesina however said for the nation to be fully accepted, it will need to reform its land policy. He disclosed this during the visit of the Presidential Committee on Land Reforms led by Prof. Peter Adeniyi in Abuja.

The minister said: “We will soon join a new alliance for global food security and we have strong support with all existing countries for Nigeria’s participation in this. One of the policy reforms required is land reform as a condition because it is the only way you can guarantee access of the poor to land,” Adesina said.

The Minister urged the committee to cut down the cost of land registration and also look into women access to land. He decried inability of the country to fully utilise its arable land, stressing that land registration has been widely politicised.

He said private sectors also experience tough time to access land for large scale farming and farmers cannot use their land for collateral because of high level of politicisation and corruption in the system.

Adesina advised the delegates to address the issues and protect rights of community to land in order to avoid land grab. He pledged that the ministry would give the committee all the needed support to ensure proper titling and registration of land, and proper planning of land use.