The newly
elected president of the National Cotton Association of Nigeria (NACOTAN) Mr.
Anibe Achimugu has indicated about thirteen ways the produce would be
positively repositioned towards achieving the vision of President Mohammudu Buhari’s
backwards integration policy of the economy to non oil sector of agriculture
for wealth and job creation.
At the
official handling over of the certificate of office by the National President,
umbrella body of Federation of Agricultural Commodity Association of Nigeria (FACAN)
Dr. Victor Iyama, the NACOTAN president promised that the newly constituted
executives would ensure a unified voice towards cotton development both
nationally and internationally through targeting of 400,000 smallholders
farmers with an estimated two million dependants participating in various out
growers scheme.
Mr. Anibe
Achimugu also promised solution to areas of challenges facing the sub sector
stated that “key constraint affecting the cotton sub sector such as high cost
of providing extension services, the non adoption of appropriate farming
technologies such as conservation farming, below average yields and production,
poor quality, lack of appropriate legislation and enforcement of regulation,
inadequate research and development will be given serious attention for
solution “.
He was appreciative
of the Minister of Agriculture, Chief Audu Ogbeh, his counterpart Trade and
Investment, Mr. Okechukwu Enelamah and CBN Governor but however indicated that
the association would establish an operational affiliation with other cotton
organizations globally in order to ensure studying and adopting of the best
cotton practices towards ensuring market acceptability for the progress on the
members and entire nation economically.
In his short
massage to the association, the FACAN President, Dr. Iyama urged the executives
to ensure the use of standard jute bags made of kanal for packaging saying it
would checkmate hydrocarbon ones thereby preventing sub standard . He called on
the government to politically support the sector, and this has been his hall
mark since time of President Obasanjo.
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Dr. Iyama
said that “All of us in this sector must be challenged as I have said it
severally during the time of President Obasanjo. It is agriculture that we can
use to build Nigeria. We have never harnessed the opportunity we have in crude
oil rather our leaders are just sharing the proceeds from the crude into
personal pockets instead to use the money to develop agriculture. 300-400
billion naira can come from agriculture with strong political will at all
levels of government. It is possible. I urged your association to ensure the
use of jute bag from kanal for packaging. Your association must encourage the
growth of kanal to produce enough jute bags so as to prevent challenges of sub
standard occasioned by hydrocarbon”
Also the Minister
of the Trade and Investment, Mr. Okechukwu Enelamah ably represented advised the constituted executive to ensure
unity towards assessing the incentives of government adding government would be
more ready to deal with organized association than individual.
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