National President, Sunflower Growers, Processors and Marketers Association of Nigeria (SUNGPMAN), Alhaji Bukar |
The Federal
Government (FG) of Nigeria is now ready to give proactive measure towards
galvanizing the commercial productivity of sunflower as it has been officially
included in the national budget. This was revealed to us by the National
President of the crop, Alhaji Jubril Bubar.
Speaking
with Food Farm News on the neglect of the crop, the National President,
Sunflower Growers, Processors and Marketers Association of Nigeria (SUNGPMAN),
Alhaji Bukar hinted that the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural
Development (FMARD) was already giving a positive approach to the development
of the crop added the crop has been included in the national budget so as to be
well galvanized at all the value chains for both local and export markets.
The
inclusion of sunflower in the national budget according to the national
President was a reflection of FMARD’s commitment to ensuring that the crop is
well galvanized for commercial productivity because of its economic potentials
both locally and internationally in terms of oil content that is less cholesterols
for human consumption.
According to
AlhajiBukar “I was at the Ministry in Abuja with some of my chairmen from the
states where we were told that the crop will be well promoted as it has been
captured in the national budget for year 2018. This is an indication that
government is ready to promote the crop at all the value chains for its
economic benefits for human consumption, animal feeds and industrial uses at
the pharmaceutical and cosmetics industry”
He commended
the release of four improved varieties of the crop by the Institute for
Agricultural Research (IAR) Zaria saying that “the varieties have 72 days
period for maturity, 80 days, 85 days, and 92 days depending on the particular
variety”
He however
wanted the states government to also support the crop in many fronts through
land provision for cultivations, and mechanized and agro inputs that would
enhance commercial productivity for wealth creation from more earning locally
and internationally.
Presently
the association according to the Sunflower President has its members across the
country, in Bayelsa, kano, Kaduna, Katsina, Zamfara, Bauchi, Nasarawa, Taraba,
Gombe, Bornu, Yobe, Ekiti, Imo, Ogun and Ondo.
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