By Yakubu LAAH InvestAdvocate

Lagos (INVESTADVOCATE)-Nigeria on Wednesday approved borrowing of $945 million from the International Development Association (IDA), an arm of the World Bank for irrigation and drainage projects, Bashir Yuguda, minister of state for finance said.

According to the minister, the borrowing consists of $495 million for irrigation projects in states including Kano, Sokoto and Zamfara; $250 million for providing water in Bauchi, Ekiti and Rivers states; and $200 million to prevent flooding in Ibadan.

Yuguda said the loan is repayable in 20 years, and comes at an interest rate of 1.25 percent and a service cost of 0.75 percent, ‘’with irrigation Nigeria will have capacity for a “year-out year-in farming season,” he said.

Nigeria seeks to expand agricultural output to reduce dependence on oil exports, which account for more than 70 percent of government revenue.

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) says agriculture, which employs more than 60 percent of the population, represents about 22 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP).