Farouk Gumel

Farouk Gumel - Finally, agriculture is taking its rightful place as the sector that will take Nigerians out of poverty and into an era of inclusive and collective prosperity. Although the sector employs millions of Nigerians and accounts for an estimated 20% of the country’s GDP, many still view supporting agriculture as a charitable act as opposed to a business venture. This is the simple reason why many farmers in this sector are classified as “under employed” due to their mere inability to grow beyond the subsistence level. Nigeria is blessed as we have the potential to excel in all the key sub-sectors of agriculture. We have the land and forests for farming and grazing. We have the water (sea, lakes and rivers) for fishing and aquaculture. We have the capacity and the climate for livestock and poultry production. And of course, we have the manpower to get all this done. Therefore, it is extremely exciting for all of us to see significant investments going into this sector. We are ...

  Farouk Gumel - Oil was discovered in Nigeria in the 1950’s and today, Nigeria is the eleventh-largest oil-producer in the world and Africa’s main oil producer. In 1977, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) was founded to participate and regulate the country’s oil sector. Since then, significant progress has been made in terms of increasing production, revenues, and consumption. We must thank NNPC for Nigeria’s dominance in Africa when it comes to oil production. This dominance however came with its downsides. As a nation, Nigeria became over reliant, or one could even say addicted, to oil revenues. From the 1970’s, we convinced ourselves that Nigeria is rich. And maybe we are. But the reality is poverty has always been around growing side by side with our oil production and the apparent wealth. This is because as oil brings revenues to a nation, it does not create jobs in a nation. According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), the petroleum industry directl...

  Farouk Gumel -In a continent where some 50% of its population are farmers, Africa still imports billions of dollars of food every year to meet its needs. These imports, which are by choice and not out of necessity, have kept the demand for locally produced food items at extremely low levels. As a result, Africa’s rural farmers, except for those in export focused value chains, were left in a vicious circle of subsistence with little opportunity for growth. The sad fact is these imported food items (including grains) can be grown indigenously. In Africa, agriculture remains the key link that connects the affluent urban centres to the poorer rural areas. What does this mean you ask? Well, Africa’s growing middle class (entrepreneurs or salaried staff) live in its urban centres. They spend a sizable amount of their income on food. But due to Africa’s reliance on food imports, these funds are sent overseas thereby creating jobs abroad. As the urban consumer patronises imported food it...

  Farouk Gumel , Nigeria - In this technology-driven world, we are gradually seeing every aspect of human life being influenced by technology. This has changed the way we see and do things. The agricultural sector is not any different. On a daily basis, we learn of new technologies that support farming, storage, processing, logistics, and sales. This is very exciting for the sector which, at least in Africa, has been very slow to modernize. The question however is how can we transition to ensure we fully harness the benefits of modern agricultural practices while managing its inherent risks? The Technological Advancement in Farming State of the art technology and science-based farming practices undoubtedly bring higher yields, more efficient production, better quality products, and enhanced profitability. In developed and/or sparsely populated nations, farming machinery is preferred as they are more efficient and cheaper. The automation of planting, irrigation, and harvesting has ...