Briefly outline the measures which Nigeria has taken to improve the marketing of her agricultural produce.

Answer Details

To improve the marketing of her agricultural produce, both locally and for export, Nigeria has taken several measures over the years:

1. Establishment of marketing boards / commodity boards. Government set up boards to buy, grade, store and sell major export crops (cocoa, groundnut, palm produce, cotton), guarantee minimum prices to farmers and stabilise their incomes against world-price swings.
2. Construction of storage and processing facilities. Building of silos, warehouses, cold stores and processing plants to reduce post-harvest losses of perishable and bulky produce and to add value before sale.
3. Improvement of transport and feeder roads. Building and repairing rural feeder roads, railways and haulage links to move produce cheaply from farms to markets and ports.
4. Provision of price support and guaranteed minimum prices. Government price-support schemes and buffer stocks to protect farmers from ruinous price falls and to encourage production.
5. Grading and standardisation of produce. Enforcing uniform grades, quality standards and inspection so that Nigerian produce meets export requirements and commands better prices.
6. Provision of credit and cooperatives. Encouraging marketing cooperatives and providing agricultural credit (for example through the Nigerian Agricultural and Cooperative Bank) so farmers can market jointly and bargain better.
7. Market information and research. Supplying farmers with price and market information and supporting research bodies (such as the Nigerian Stored Products Research Institute) to reduce losses and guide selling.
8. Development programmes. Programmes such as Operation Feed the Nation, the Green Revolution and Agricultural Development Projects (ADPs) that included marketing and distribution components.

Examination reminder: group the measures into three themes - institutions (boards, cooperatives), infrastructure (storage, transport) and price and quality support (guaranteed prices, grading) - to present a well-organised answer.