Garba Shehu, the President’s Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity says his principal, President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration created 12 million new jobs in agriculture alone.
Shehu made the statement on Channels TV’s ”Sunrise Daily” programme, as he stressed that the administration did well in many sectors including power, security, anti-corruption fight among others.
He said the previous administration spent $5 billion on the purchase of foreign rice, but under Buhari, no money has been budgeted for the same purpose.
The presidential spokesman said; “In agriculture alone, the Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN) is talking about 12 million new jobs, look at what we did in agriculture, this administration inherited just four functional fertilizer processing companies, we have 52 that are working today.
“And this shifted the supplies of fertilizer to these 12 million new rice farmers, today rice farmers alone domestically produce rice. This country has achieved food sufficiency, we have diversified the economy, we are no longer a monocultural economy.
“This country had spent $5 billion before this administration every day to buy foreign rice, today no one US Dollar leaves the Central Bank of Nigeria for foreign rice.
