NESG: Plant protection law implementation to boost export, attract foreign investments

The Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) says implementation of the Plant Variety Protection (PVP) Act will boost export, attract foreign investments, and provide more food for the Nigerian citizens. 

Laoye Jaiyeola, NESG CEO, said this during a conference organised by the National Agricultural Seeds Council (NASC) in Lagos on Thursday.

The PVP Act 2021 was signed into law by Muhammadu Buhari in May 2021.

The law seeks to give plant breeders intellectual property over a new plant variety, with exclusive rights to commercialize seed and/or propagation material of the variety. It also aims to incentivise national and multinational agribusiness investments and develop Nigeria’s agriculture value chain.

Explaining the importance of the implementation, Jaiyeola said the PVP would increase income and profits for small-scale farmers and plant breeders, which will create jobs and equitable growth for youths in rural communities.

“There is no doubt that the implementation of Plant Variety Protection Act will assist to better position Nigeria to feed her growing population and equally attract foreign investments into the Seed sub-sector as well as enjoy the gains of intra- and inter-border trade opportunities in seed trade and exports,” he said.

“Furthermore, as we intentionally integrate digitization into the seed-subsector processes, service delivery will be improved for small-scale farmers, interactive digital extension sessions and user-friendly mobile applications can be facilitated and strengthened with farmers on sustainable agronomic practices.

“This will further unlock competitiveness within the agri-food ecosystem with appropriate demand forecasts.

“The development and uptake of innovative and support systems will remove the binding constraints with seed security and better productivity within the agriculture sector.”

He said NESG would further collaborate with seed sector players in ensuring adequate implementation.

In his remarks, Phillip Ojo, NASC director-general, said through the PVP law implementation, “we will begin to see on our farmer’s field superior yielding, stress-tolerant, disease resistant, climate-smart and input efficient varieties which will be introduced by innovative breeders both from the public and the private sector in few years to come.

“We will begin to witness efficient land use and reduced food cost as a result of the increased productivity from cultivated hectares across the country.

“For Nigeria, therefore, not to become a dumping ground for all sought of junks through the importation of ‘seeds’, we must complete this process which we make us a strong player in the global trade of seeds in the near future”.

The NESG had said the implementation of the PVP will enable the federal government to generate $2 billion from seed exports within five years.