By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The food crisis rocking Nigeria may soon be over if plans by a leading agribusiness company, Olam Agri, to address the issue quickly come to fruition.
This is because the firm has committed to invest about N6.5 billion in initiatives that will positively transform lives and impact the livelihoods of its host communities while ramping up food production in the country over the next four years.
The organisation said this would be done by significantly expanding its Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability (CR&S) investment strategy to deepen its social, environmental, and economic development impact within the country.
“As a business founded in Nigeria over 34 years ago, we are committed to investing in initiatives that positively transform lives and impact the livelihoods of our host communities while scaling food production in the country.
“We are dedicated to turning our priorities into action by implementing key sustainability initiatives across our value chain to advance the current administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda. Our four-year implementation plan aims to make a real impact that benefits all,” the Managing Director of Olam Agri in Nigeria, Mr Anil Nair, said.
He noted further that the expanded investment commitment will support Olam Agri’s purpose for sustainable development across its business portfolio of rice, wheat milling and pasta, animal feed and protein, sesame, cotton, and edible oils from 2024 through 2028.
In addition, significant provisions in the four-year plan also include smallholder farmer capacity building in rural communities to strengthen food security, rural road rehabilitation to reduce disruption of the value chain, distribution of harvesters to reduce post-harvest loss, participation in public-private partnerships in seed and product R&D, among others.
For instance, in 2024 alone, the agribusiness plans to invest about $1.07 million into initiatives, which has already seen the presentation of education grants to 15 qualified students from the University of Lagos in January, awarding scholarships to 87 underprivileged students in Nasarawa State in June, manual harvesters for wheat farmers in Jigawa and empowering 118 agri-extension workers in Kwara State in July.