Are you looking for the Best Agribusiness stakeholders IBADAN

1.         Agribusiness In Nigeria: Expectation  Versus Reality    Agriculture has now undergone a major revolution that has seen the  utilization of innovative technology to increase output, sustainability and  global food security. The acceleration of technology and innovation has  engendered awareness of agriculture and its significance.  This, in turn, has precipitated the growth of agribusiness globally  

2.   Since independence, Nigeria and African countries at large have gradually  morphed from being a self-sufficient agricultural country to a big wig  importer. Since the 1970s, the agricultural sector has become displaced as a  significant contributing sector in Nigeria especially with the oil boom that  redirected attention to the oil sector.  Consequently, agriculture’s contributions to Nigeria have dropped to about  34% and simultaneously, the rate of unemployment as well. Since 1975,  Nigeria has become a significant importer of essential food items including  rice, fish, and sugar.  The fact remains that the agricultural sector has been incapacitated by gross  underutilization and low production output because of the shift in focus from  the industry. However, irrespective of these hindrances, strategic planning is  the key to creating agricultural opportunities that will place Nigeria in the map  of the world as a leading food-producing nation. Agriculture has the potential  to raise economic growth and adjust the balance of standard living through  employment and poverty reduction, however, this can only be achieved by  management policies and strategies geared at helping the sector to fit into the  business and marketing world through agribusiness.  The concept of agribusiness has been credited to Ray A. Goldberg and John H.  Davis and has been taken to mean all activities involved in the production,  manufacturing, storage, and distribution of farm produce.  Essentially, agribusiness has stimulated the establishment of an integrated  system of interdependence and mutual benefit based on a value-added food  chain system.  There are three significant sectors tied to the interdependent agribusiness  sector which include the agricultural industry, the production sector, and the  processing and manufacturing sector.  There are other relevant subsectors attached to these interdependent sectors,  among which are the genetic and seed stock farms, merchandisers, processors,  retailers and finally the consumers. 

3.   However, while the awareness for agribusiness has boomed considerably in  Nigeria, the expectation and reality of agribusiness often beat the imagination  of many involved sectors especially the investors. Investing in agribusiness  does not necessarily require prior knowledge about agriculture, however, if  you plan on harnessing the opportunities in both agriculture and business,  then adequate knowledge is needed.  One of the challenges for starters in agribusiness is knowing how to merge the  practical and business side.  For neophytes, the return on investment is one of the challenging factors,  although the agric value chain is diverse, employing the right techniques to  yield adequate profit equal to investment has proved taxing. One of the many  notions of people is that agribusiness is a mining field, hence once they invest  in the sector, they expect profits to roll in momentarily. Agribusiness like any  other start-up requires monetary investment and time as well.  The reality is that more government policies and individual knowledge are  necessary to succeed in the agribusiness sector. Because of the copious risks  involved in individual agribusiness start-ups, investment companies have  created opportunities for people to harness the opportunities in agribusiness  while minimizing the risks through agribusiness investment which requires  only capital investment, leaving the aspects of large-scale farming to experts  in the field. These market-oriented investment companies are pivotal to  creating an environment for agribusiness to thrive. While such large-scale  farming and investment companies are gradually increasing, in reality,  agriculture is still primarily dominated by low scale farming in several parts of  Nigeria where traditional methods of farming prevail. Significantly, the growth  of agribusiness, like any other sector is tied to a country’s level of  development. Nigeria is a developing country, hence the adaptation of  agribusiness is progressing at a slower pace as subsistence farming still  dominates the scene.  The outcome of this is fewer market-oriented farms and low productivity. This  thus has a toll on the income gap and cost of production as well as capital  flight. Low productivity and fewer market-oriented farms have made Nigeria a  dumping ground for numerous substandard agricultural products in the bid to  satisfy the rising demand for food production. While government policies and 

4.   agencies have sprung us to increase food productivity, circulation, and  simultaneously economic development, the success of agribusiness in Nigeria  is also reliant on individual investments. Since there are various investment  platforms available in Nigeria where all that is required is a percentage or unit  investment in agriculture in exchange for a fixed amount of Return on  Investment for a period of time, individual participation has also been enabled.  Just like the newly introduced Sukuk funds, this initiative would accelerate the  spread of market-oriented farms, large-scale agricultural production, food  circulation and economic development at large. Summarily, while agribusiness  in Nigeria has proved to be a beneficial sector with huge potentials, the  challenges attached to it have to be surmounted before its rippling effects can  begin to gain ground.  ORIGINAL SOURCE:  https://fpe.com.ng/agribusiness-in-nigeria-expectation-versus-reality/