Nigeria plans to import 500,000 tons of fertilizer next year to ease inadequacy of fertilizer faced by farmers, Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo said on Tuesday.

Obasanjo, who made the announcement in Ilorin, the capital of Nigeria's western state of Kwara, at an interactive session on his second day of official visit to Kwara, said his government would " subsidize the commodity by 25 percent."

He also said the government would "subsidize hybrid seeds and tractors as well."

Meanwhile, the president urged Nigerians to produce fertilizer locally instead of importing the commodity because the raw materials needed for fertilizer production "are available in the country."

During his visit to the Nigerian western state, Obasanjo has inaugurated some agricultural projects, including a cashew processing plant at Ogbondoroko and grain silos at Oke-Oyi.

Before petroleum was found in the country, Nigeria was an important agricultural production country in the world, which was well known as the world's largest peanut producer and the largest cocoa producer as well.

Source: Xinhua