The Federal Government says it will slash the price of Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium (NPK) fertiliser to N5,000 per bag to encourage farmers to boost agricultural production in the country.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that a bag of NPK is currently being sold between N7,500 and N9,000 in the open market.

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, said this in an interview with newsmen in Abuja on Tuesday.

Ogbeh explained that the plan is to make food production easier and enhance profit for farmers in the country.

He disclosed that the government would take delivery of the first shipment of 800,000 tonnes of NPK fertiliser from Morocco by Jan. 27.

According to him, we want the blending to take place everywhere in the country, so that the farmer can have access to fertiliser at the lowest possible cost.

“We expect the first shipment of phosphate from Morocco to arrive by Friday in Lagos and then the blending will be done here.

“We are bringing the price of fertiliser to N5,000 per bag.

“We want to ensure that every blender in the country who has the capacity will blend and even those that their machines are not in order, we are going to support them.

“If we can bring the prices of fertiliser to N5,000 per bag, food production will become easier and farmers will enhance their profit.

“That is why the King of Morocco (Mohammed VI) came to Nigeria and that is why President Muhammadu Buhari also went to Morocco.

“The target we have is about 700,000 to 800,000 tonnes of fertiliser per annum from Morocco but the problem we have is that we do not only satisfy Nigeria, our neighbours always come in and take a bit.

“We cannot deny them entirely but we have to satisfy ourselves first.”

NAN reports that Dangote Group and the OCP Group of Morocco had in December 2016, signed an agreement to import more than two million tonnes of customised fertiliser into Nigeria.

The agreement was meant to boost fertiliser production and businesses in the country within the next three years.

The OCP Group is a global leader in phosphate and phosphate derivatives market. (NAN)

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