Agriculture Public Expenditure Review at the Federal and Subnational Levels in Nigeria (2008-12)

Abstract

Agricultural expenditure is critical to the transformation of the agricultural sector in Nigeria. Yet spending on agriculture remains at low levels in spite of the sector’s huge potential for wealth creation, employment generation, and poverty reduction. This report is a summary of the findings of the Nigeria agricultural public expenditure review (AgPER) at the federal and subnational levels. The main objectives of this review are to (1) examine the extent to which the size and composition of public spending on agriculture is consistent with national and subnational agricultural policies and development priorities, (2) analyze the efficiency and effectiveness of public resources allocated to agriculture, (3) understand the cross-tier fiscal and planning relationships between the federal government and subnational governments, (4) develop a database of public agricultural expenditures at the federal and subnational levels, and (5) provide recommendations on how to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of public agricultural spending to advance Nigeria’s Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA). In addition to the federal-level analysis, the review analyzes agricultural public expenditures in three case study states: (1) cross river, (2) Niger, and (3) Ondo, and three case study local government areas (LGAs): (1) Akamkpa, (2) Wushishi, and (3) Odigbo. The analysis at the federal level covers the period 2008-12, while the subnational-level analysis covers the period 2000-12.