Nigeria and Germany firmed up their mutual efforts in tackling post-harvest losses by driving the implementation of seed and grain conditioning technologies.
His Excellency Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, was the honoured guest of PETKUS Technologie GmbH in Wutha Farnroda (Thuringia, Germany). The meeting was of high importance to proceed joined activities in the field of how seed and grain technologies can contribute to wealth, infrastructure and gross national product in Nigeria in the near future.
Beforehand, a MoU [Memorandum of Understanding] between PETKUS Technologie GmbH and the Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL) was signed in Abuja (Nigeria) in the presence of the German Chancellor Angela Merkel. She emphasised that “an interesting MoU was signed today.” The MoU is intended to significantly strengthen agricultural production, particularly at the level of smallholder farming. On the basis of this German-Nigerian cooperation, it will be ensured that “loans can be granted to
agricultural enterprises”, said Merkel.
The visit of H.E. Prof. Yemi Osinbajo together with Aliyu Abbati Abdulhameed, Managing Director of NIRSAL, was a strong signal for the ambition and seriousness of the country to develop to be a strong player in agricultural production and agribusiness. “With the MoU, the foundation was laid, now we have to build the house,” says Peter Hüser, Leader Key Accounts Seed & Market Leader Africa at PETKUS. Thus, the delegation met with Mark Scholze, CEO PETKUS, Peter Hüser, PETKUS Market Leader Africa, Didier Sanon, PETKUS Sales Manager Africa, and Mohammed Sabik, PETKUS Agronomist and Seed Technology Engineer, in order to discuss further steps, turning the MoU into achievement of the objectives.
“A sustainable value-added chain can start with a PETKUS K Cleaner”, explains Hüser. Yields can increase significantly by up to 20% without additional application of fertilizers and other chemical pesticides. In the first year of investment, it is already to be expected that around 2,000 tonnes of improved seed can be produced per PETKUS machine. This results in an additional yield of more than 3,000 tonnes of commodities. This corresponds to a monetary added value of over 600 T€ for the farmers generated per PETKUS cleaner. In addition, seed processing triggers the awareness of quality as well as the knowledge about technologies. As a result, it fosters creation of income, jobs, cooperative mind-set, local infrastructure of service, and encouraging the establishment of formal seed systems replacing insecure informal systems.
Action in this field is urgently needed. According to a FAO report, Nigeria loses aggregate food production equivalent to $9 billion each year due to a lack of post-harvest technology. Abdulhameed is convinced that PETKUS, as a specialist for post-harvest technologies such as cleaning, drying and storage, can contribute with its valuable expertise to reduce loss and to generate added value. In addition to high-quality machines suitable for the African market, technological consulting and training, PETKUS also brings with it its experience in project
financing and implementation. It doesn’t always take big investments to achieve big things. “With every machine we supply, we want to make our contribution to increasing crop yields, to provide employment and improve incomes for family farms,” says Hüser. The state visit was finalised by the official signing of an agreement between both partners that transferred the former MoU into a contractual relationship with firm commitments
