The House of Representatives, on Wednesday passed through second reading a bill seeking to establish the Nigerian Institute of Agricultural and Applied Economics to regulate, control and determine the standard of knowledge to be attained by persons seeking to become members of the institute.

The proposed legislation sponsored by Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu and eight others, was presented for second reading at the plenary on Wednesday by one of the co-sponsors Tolani Shagaya.

In his lead debate, Shagaya noted that Nigeria’s agriculture sector is the very backbone of economy and with the sector, the country can easily return to the path of economic diversification, national prosperity, job creation, sufficiency in food production, amongst others.

He lamented that one critical area that has not received the attention it deserves is the field of Agricultural and Applied Economics.

According to him, as today, farmers struggle not because they lack effort, but because they lack the benefit of economic planning and analysis by experts and professionals in that field.

He said the bill is not just about establishing another institution but about institutionalising excellence, setting a national standard, and giving proper identity and professional structure to an often overlooked but absolutely vital field in our economy.

The lawmaker therefore urged his colleagues to support the bill’s passage, assuring that it’s not just for the agricultural economists it seeks to empowers, but for the millions of farmers, consumers, and investors whose future depends on smart, sustainable, and data-driven agriculture.