A KEYNOTE ADDRESS DELIVERED BY HIS EXCELLENCY, PRESIDENT MUHAMMADU BUHARI, GCFR, PRESIDENT AND COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE ARMED FORCES OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIAAT THE OPENING CEREMONY OF THE FIRST INTERNATIONAL COCOA SUMMIT HOLDING FROM 28TH TO 31ST AUGUST, 2017 AT NICON LUXURY HOTEL, ABUJA.

President Muhammadu Buhari RTD (GCFR)

President and Commander-In-Chief of Armed Forces of

Federal Republic of Nigeria.

 It is my singular honor and pleasure to be in your midst today to address this distinguished gathering at the opening ceremony of the First International Cocoa Summit taking place in our nation’s capital, Abuja.

This event is another milestone in the nation’s determined effort to diversify its economic base through aggressive production and marketing drive. This initiative represents in itself the innovative Nigerian spirit and determination to set our country on the path of true economic diversification. This summit is an excellent initiative that will go along way in opening the Nigerian economy to local and foreign investors 1while encouraging strategic partnerships necessary for resuscitation of the cocoa sub-sector of our economy.

  The purpose of this summit is to reposition the cocoa sub-sector to regain its lost glory and bring to the fore the strategic importance of cocoa to our national economy in line with the economic diversification policy of this Administration.  This summit is therefore designed to be part of this administration Agricultural commodity revolution with cocoa as one of the main drivers, Cocoa is the second largest foreign exchange earner for Nigeria after crude oil and has generated over 2 million jobs directly and indirectly along its value chain. The sector has suffered neglect as a result of over reliance on crude oil. This led to decline in countries annual production from 420 Metric Tons in the 60s to 192,000 Metric tons in 2015. The consequence is Nigeria’s drop from 4^th to 7^th position in global cocoa production. The summit is therefore expected to address this trend so as to put the country back to its prime position.

 I understand that the theme of the summit is “Cocoa a Strategic Commodity for National Economic Development” which underpins the nucleus of the present Administration’s Change Agenda that intends to continue with policies  aimed at diversifying the Nigerian economy from a mono-economy depending almost entirely on revenue from export of crude oil petroleum to Agriculture, Solid Mineral and Services. This theme is very thoughtful and timely considering the significance of the cocoa sub-sector to the growth of the economy. This theme demonstrates that the only way to put the nation on the path of sustainable economic growth and development is through the promotion of non-oil sector of our economy. There is no doubt that this summit will serve as a veritable tool for key stakeholders in the cocoa sub-sector to interact in a frank and pragmatic manner to discuss the systemic, institutional and regulatory obstacles to the development of the sector. It is my expectation  that this summit will proffer simple, practical and result-oriented solution that will boost the consumption, marketing and growth of the sub-sector and to ensure that Nigeria reclaims its prime position among cocoa producing nations in the world. This administration believes in the central role of the organized private sectors as the engine of growth of the economy and will therefore work towards strengthening the productive sectors of the economy, developing an outward looking export promotion strategy and ensure a steady progression in the development of the agriculture sector of the economy.

 Ladies and Gentle men, as a Government we understand the need of our domestic producers to operate and compete favourably with their counterparts from other climes. In this regards, Government is working hard to improve the business environment for both local and foreign investors as well as encouraging the development of Domestic Consumption. I want to urge you all to join hands with the Federal Government  to improve the production and export base of our economy by increasing production, processing, packaging and marketing of our non-oil export commodities. Let me assure you that the Federal Government is committed to restoring the agricultural and industrial sector to its prime position before the discovery of crude oil. I therefore wish to use this occasion to call all stakeholders to support and key into government policy of promotion of non-oil export as an alternative source of revenue. If all hands are on deck, the policy will not only boost our country’s economic growth and development but will serve as a road-map towards genuine industrialization and integration of our economy with other developed economies of the world. My Administration is ever ready to implement the decisions of the summit that will accelerate the economy growth of the nation and assist in the realization of the economic diversification policy of the Government. The Government under my watch will continue to demonstrate its commitment in providing favorable incentives for the development of both local entrepreneurship and inflow of foreign direct investment. I wish to assure you that the implementation of our reforms on the Ease Of Doing Business will be the back bone for the re-positioning of the cocoa sub-sector in Nigeria.

There is doubt that Nigeria is long overdue to make the shift from being primarily an exporter of commodities and raw materials, to becoming an industrial economy. Our industrialization ambition is hinged on the Nigerian Industrialization Revolution Plan (NIRP), lunched by previous government in 2014. It is now our obligation to implement that plan alongside the Economic Recovery  and Growth Plan (ERGP) in view of current realities. To this end, we are focusing on identifying and supporting a select number of industrial sectors in which Nigeria has comparative advantage. I hereby call on all relevant stakeholders in Agriculture, Industry and other productive sectors of the economy to strive to achieve higher standards seek local and foreign markets and show the world that Nigeria can achieve excellence like other developed countries. Let me also sieve this opportunity to appeal to all Nigerians to patronize Made-In-Nigeria goods and services as a way of encouraging our industrialists to grow the economy.

It is my fervent hope therefore that the gains of the Summit and the exposure that will be acquired would to a large extent assist us to move the Nigerian economy to an enviable height. The challenges are no doubt very daunting but equally surmountable. With your support and resilience, we should be able to offer the best to the world through the development of the various sector of our sectors of our economy, using the right technology as well as conforming with  the rules and best practices. It is my expectation that the end of the summit, more foreign investors will flood our country to take full advantage of the abundant investment opportunities available in Nigeria, given the conducive economic environment and package of incentives provided by the Government. I urge all of you participating in this summit to use the event as a vehicle to instill confidence in local and foreign investors to invest in the Nigerian economy and create a more robust and better competitive market for the cocoa sub-sector.

Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to command the organizers and sponsors of this summit for their hard work, diligence and the excellent arrangements put in place to make this event a huge success.  I would also seize this opportunity to welcome the leadership of the ICCO and Afrexim Bank together with our foreign participants, Resource Persons, Speakers and Discussants to this August occasion. I also acknowledge the role of our various development partners in making this event a success.

 On this note, it is my privilege and honor to declare the first Nigeria International Cocoa Summit open.

 I thank you all and wish you fruitful deliberations.

President Muhammadu Buhari RTD (GCFR)

President and Commander-In-Chief of Armed Forces of

Federal Republic of Nigeria.

28^th August, 2017.