Minister for Agriculture and Livestock Development Ramnath Adhikari has said that the government was working towards transforming subsistence agriculture into sustainable, entrepreneurial and competitive one.
Launching the Global Food Security Strategy (GFSS), Country Plan and USAID Agriculture Direct Financing Activity (Agricultural G2G) here today, Minister Adhikari emphasized modernization of agriculture sector, stating that it was the primary means of livelihood for two-third of the rural population in Nepal.
Noting that agriculture sector had contributed up to 24.5 per cent to the country’s Gross Domestic Production (GDP), Adhikari mentioned that high costs, low productivity, farmers’ limited access to seeds, fertilizers, tool and unorganized market for the produces among others were the challenges of the agriculture sector.
He shared the government was also working towards addressing the complaints pouring in from the farmers and entrepreneurs in obtaining loan from the agriculture cooperatives and
secure government support for agriculture.
Highlighting the impact of climate change on agriculture sector, the Minister called for coordinated efforts among the government, development partners, private sector, cooperatives and farmers to usher agriculture sector towards commercialization and industrialization.
He expressed readiness on the part of government for the same. He informed that preparation was afoot to consider amendment in legislations to increase investment in agriculture sector and to attract youths to this sector.
According to him, the government is now working as per its decision to declare the Agriculture Investment Decade.
Minister Adhikari expressed his confidence that the Global Food Security Strategy would foster policies aimed at promoting agriculture-based economic development, bolstering entrepreneurial agriculture, improving food and nutrition security, reducing poverty and increasing private sector’s investment in agriculture sector.
Present in the programme were US Ambassador
to Nepal Dean R Thompson and US Agency for International Development (USAID) Nepal’s Mission Director Katie Donohoe among others.
Source: National News Agency RSS