NABG urges grading, standardisation to transform Nigeria’s agribusiness sector
President of the Nigeria Agribusiness Group (NABG), Architect Kabir Ibrahim, has called for the adoption of grading and standardisation in agricultural production to position Nigeria’s agribusiness sector for optimal value. He made the call yesterday during a one-day consultative workshop on the National Agricultural Commodity Standards Grading System (AgCSGS) and Policy Framework, themed “Unlocking our […]
President of the Nigeria Agribusiness Group (NABG), Architect Kabir Ibrahim, has called for the adoption of grading and standardisation in agricultural production to position Nigeria’s agribusiness sector for optimal value.
He made the call yesterday during a one-day consultative workshop on the National Agricultural Commodity Standards Grading System (AgCSGS) and Policy Framework, themed “Unlocking our Agri-Commodity Market,” held in Abuja.
Ibrahim explained that the workshop marked the culmination of three years of intensive work aimed at sensitising Nigerian producers to embrace systematic standardisation practices.
He stressed the importance of producing unified agricultural products to counter the long-standing issue of rejection in international markets, as well as to secure better prices domestically.
“Today’s event is the climax of the work we have been doing for the last three years, trying to wake our producers up to the fact that they need to systematically standardise what they produce so that they will not be rejected,” he added.
The NABG president described agribusiness as a pathway from poverty to prosperity for Nigerian farmers, urging stakeholders—including smallholder and large-scale farmers alike—to prioritise grading in agricultural production.
“Agribusiness is the thing that will work for the farmer. It will take the farmer out of poverty into prosperity. That’s why we are making a clarion call to everybody in Nigeria…to embrace grading so that whatever they produce will get premium value in the market internally and externally,” he stated.
Speaking on Nigeria’s agribusiness penetration, Ibrahim noted its robust informal trade within Africa, citing the flow of commodities along regional trade corridors. However, he pointed out that such informal transactions have denied the nation significant revenue.
He emphasised that initiatives such as the AgCSGS and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) present opportunities for formalising trade and enhancing Nigeria’s international market penetration. “Nigeria’s agribusiness penetration is phenomenal within Africa, and with AfCFTA, it could be enhanced,” he affirmed.
Ibrahim also spoke on the importance of mechanisation in achieving standardisation, acknowledging that smallholder farmers remain the cornerstone of production in Nigeria.
“We will start teaching the smallholder farmer to be able to produce using handheld equipment…and then when mechanisation takes effect, these things will be more seamless,” he explained.
The workshop also called for a renewed commitment to enhancing Nigeria’s agribusiness landscape to make it globally competitive.