With the the release of the statement below, its no doubt, agriculture has come to stay and is the new oil discovery. Come be a part of the next big thing.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
PRESS RELEASE
BoA, FMTI, AFAN, NASC, State governments okay
promotion of AgricBusiness
….As maiden agric trade show births...
….As maiden agric trade show births...
The Bank of Agriculture (BoA), All Farmers’ Association of
Nigeria (AFAN), National Agricultural Seeds Council, Port Harcourt Chamber of
Commerce and Industry as well as other stakeholders including Federal Ministry
of Investment, Trade and Industry, and all state governments are determined to
enhance the growth of agric business in the country going by their approvals of
major initiatives instituted towards realizing this objective.
One of such initiatives is the convocation of trade shows
and conference geared towards boosting the fortunes of agriculture and of
course agribusiness in the country. The latest confirmation of this resolution
by these stakeholders is the groundswell of support given to a maiden agric
trade show designed to focus on the potentials of AgricBusiness in Nigeria come
26-28 August, 2014 at the International Conference Centre, Abuja, Nigeria.
According to the organizers, West Africa Exhibitions and
Conferences (WAECON), the forthcoming agric trade show is designed to open a
new vista in the promotion of agric business as stakeholders converge to
deliberate on how to enhance the potentials of agric business in the country.
The director of events, WAECON, Dr Kune Igoni said with the
approvals received so far it is obvious that relevant agencies in the agric
sector are willing to come together on a common platform to deliberate,
collaborate and pool ideas together on how to make agric business more
productive and attractive in the country.
“We are getting more endorsements day in day out as we inch
closer to the D-day for our trade show. I think these endorsements are borne
out of the desire to harness the inherent potentials in agric business. We now
have increased consciousness to boost the agric sector by making it more
business oriented and commercial. For instance, I can proudly say that state
governments have been showing interests for the trade show with various
endorsements coming from them. The latest endorsement is from the Edo state
government where the governor had given his assurances for the trade show by
directing his Honourable Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources to
act as deemed appropriate.”
He said the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and
Investment is also not left out with the recommendation contained in a
statement signed on behalf of the Permanent Secretary by the Director,
Industrial Development and Inspectorate of the ministry, O.O Jaiyeoba which
reads: We in the ministry appreciate every effort including trade shows and
conferences like this geared toward stimulating agric business sector as
we believe this will further highlight the business potentials which is in line
with the recently launched Nigeria Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP) . The
ministry and of course minister therefore with this letter confirms approval
for the trade shows while wishing the participants fruitful deliberations.”
He added that the Kano Chamber of Commerce, Industry Mines
and Agriculture (KACCIMA) is one of the Chambers of Commerce that has also
thrown its weight behind the trade show as evidenced by its President’s acceptance
to be a resource person.
According to him, a statement credited to the acting
Director General Attahir Gwarzo on behalf of the President reads: “We sincerely
appreciate your recognition and offer for our President to present a paper in
the annual AgricBusiness trade show and conference with the theme Potential of
AgricBusiness in Nigeria. It is my pleasure to confirm acceptance of Umar
Farouk Rabiu Dansuleka to present a paper in the upcoming event.”
A paradigm shift in Agriculture through its
commercialization has become potentially necessary owing to the fact that for
far too long agriculture and farming has been practiced by farmers in Africa on
a subsistence level. At this subsistence level, there has been shrinking and
depleted farms, an ageing population with limited interest from the youth to
engage in agriculture.
To this end, the imperativeness of exploring the potential
profitability of every agriculture investment and to determine whether it makes
financial sense to proceed in the short, medium and long term is now more
feasible than ever before
It is in recognition of this fact that there have been
comprehensive interventions to ensure sustainable growth and job creation. For
example, the cassava value chain, one of the most important value chains in
Nigeria, benefited from a presidential campaign for cassava and its products,
including cassava chips, flour, etc.
With minimal investment in research, provision of market
information, access to subsidised fertiliser, and links to international
markets, cassava received a major boost in the country between 2003 and 2007.
This boost has resulted in a glut on the market, obviously disappointing
farmers. This demonstrates that a focus on increasing yields, without investing
in processing and other aspects of the value chain will lead to short-term
gains, but not long-term sustainable growth and development for actors across
the chain.
This
and many more reasons explain why the forthcoming AgricBusiness Tradeshow is
apt and timely. For details on Conference Delegate registration, Exhibition
Space and Event Sponsorship, please contact: +234-(0)816-313-7098, +234-(0)805-310-0096
and info@agricshow.com or visit event website: www.agricshow.com
Nkechi
Ogweh
Dated: 16th
July, 2014
Head of
Marketing/Public Relations
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