34
DAILY SUN Monday, March 5, 2012
Business I
Poor storage facilities blamed for food shortages ByO
Lagos, SENCE, EFlnA host agribusiness expo
T:
IC' I..:lgOS State Min i:'l lry . r A&rkuIIUR &: COOIK,..!iHS. Sl<iills t:nhancmlC'nl Centre (SEJ"\CE). and rn llancillg AmtMia1 Inno'1Ition &: AttHS (EFl1lA) I"' bosl!ng • Joint ,,,,-0-4_y Igribusineu t..lhibition targdtd . 1 2U sqfMftU of the .griadlunJ ...Iue ch.in. Chacf OpcnIlJlIiI OfflCCf of SENCE. Mrs.. Dao lOOk said the uhiblllOll, tagged AVJCfl/"'~ IIIe New FI'OIIIID' Acass 10 1nJur-1li:w. 0tI MFWl- AgriculAtmI S«Ior, "'ill bke pbce at the CRY nail Lagos. on March 29-30. The key obp:uYe of Ihe exh..
btbOn IS II, m:ale I onHlop shop mrOl'!lWlOn the KdoI' MIs. Tholl: c:xplamcd lhat the exhibition was cblgncd 10 provde IIlvestors. fanners. financial imbrullO" and other sukchokkn with rdcv.rt informalJOO on the secto, 10 SllJ'PM Ihetr IIl.Vf:SUncnl decastoM.. She noICd Ihal prar:ntly m Nigc:na. lhere "''as • pk:thor.I of ~am ~ ~ invoh'ed III the value dllilft. J..:h 1M fanncn ~DOm.. rc:seateh 1OSl1tutr:t. fm:uw;w IIl$lJIu1JOnS, IIIIdtmc: fabricItins CCJmpiNes and commodity broken. Unfonun;I1e1y DOC many pcopie know IIbouI the QlSICnoe of Ib:se organisations or ",..hat !bey do .nd, Ihcm"on:, una~ of the dr:p(h of vahutk: dala tIw are .vaibbk: 10 assISt lban 10 nJake mfonned bmmess cb:15IOI15 m
2010 survey. ~ that 20.J mlillon Idults (2A per cent or the adult ~) dawed theu maul IOOIJfnI: from~: how'ever
only 1.9 mllhon orlhc:m are banked. Of the rmwmng 18.4 million .dulls that are unbanked. 5lX mIllion orthem O\O'lI .. mobile
c::al~ on
""_..
Mrs.. rtoll: IlOkd thalllWlY NI£CfWlS
\Iiere
~lIy becom\08. more awan:: of the
~ opporttmitJcs .vailabk: W1thm !he - . ., ~, ' " by ""........, bck of QlMOhtbled infoimation on !he fiI:ICtot Sbr uplamcd !bat !he e.dubmon ....'ooki povidt l ~ the gcncnaI publIC could KC'ess mfonnalJOrl &om the various sa».:cboId!l1 In one locatMln. In .ddrtion. sa».:cboId!l1 Vo'lthm the SCCIOl' WID be able 10 shJVo'CI3C their px!ds _ 5CI'VICO mrOfllla.. bon 10 a \,1de adience. Ms. Modupc LadIpO, ChlCr ExecutlVC OffIClCl; EFinA. Iblcd th:u rllldinfs from the EFlnAAtCCSlIO ruvncal SeMca in Nigeria
rorum
phone. Tbls dononstI'1Ites the
poknl1al rOf mcreaslng ICCeSS to rmancc 10 woRen Ul the .gncullurailOCIOr and the Vlablhty of usmg mobile phones 10 do .so Ms. ladipo said the ~iblllOn wouldproVIde: KIca5 on. how 10 POSition the sector 10 be at the centre of the goYUtUnenfs dTorts 10 spur eIXIIIOIIUC IkYdoprnertt m Nisma. "The tI1aJOr challenge! f8Cmg the JeC10r In Nlgena mclude lack of m&astructure: madequak fundmJ: ~ of local 5UJBF and pr0cessing systems: ~1S from pests and dtseases: tmdef-.. fundcd rc:sean;;h and devdopmall; and advene dwlp In !he ehmate. We need 10 identify and support pobctc:S and pr0grams thai lIIIill en5llf'e that igena dJpIJ • comprehensive approach 10 agncultunl devdopmenL !IO as 10 break out of poverty. 1lus ~ ieva1lglng technokJsy 10 mtucc OOSIS in the value ch;am (lOcludmg u5mg mobile phones) and creatmg tnrJOVatTve systerns that Will foster \!dler inlaxtion between govemmenL induwy playm.. and KadmlIOl" She saxi
BOA boss seeks support for small-holder farmers
n
lie ~ that c:arrmcn:1II strcngthr:nU1& of MaDagII1& ~C1l1ef ExOCl-fiVl! small·hoIdCf fannml wa5 a viabk IIrlIlegy for OffK:Cf of the: Bank or Agncullute nabOnaI food leIQa'1ty (BOA) Lmlliro. Dr. Mohammed ~ Commc:ntlOg on the BOAIOIun State colSanturaId. has undencortd the importance of bbon\)(Xl, !be BOA boss commended the: !he gnaJl·ho\ch farmer 10 the nation's food SUIte governor. Ogbmi Rauf A.rqbcsob.. for """''Y. ius oommitmc:nl 10 the dc:vdoprnenl of the The BOA chld'made tIus auc:rtJon. <binr: grusroou. describing agncuhlft u !he lIlb· !he l1ag-ofT c:cmoony of the BOA/Osurl Scale WSOO nuil)()fl colbbonll..... Io;.n JCbane 10 male panaccI to the pnsmt ,."despread wCI'4fkirmcnC and the resuhanI: poverty m farmen ir>1hc: the nation. lie' noIed tNI this l1li'115 ltv: founh Suastl~ tb : ~ of small·holder coIlabontJOn the bank y,. . entering into with farmen and !he need (or provtSIOO of ad!> the .sm\e and dw all the ~ ones had been ~ Jq'IpOIt ((If ~ by alistakdddcrs. Dr. """",fu1 Sanwmkl obscn- d dial 90 per a:nt of natKIP' Dr, Sanllnkl conptu1aled !he cw.m Stale II bxl procb:hun was by 1fT1I1I-hukkr rantlGovemmenI: for 115 elToru In hoktng ramv:nl as and thai small-holder"farmen were 10 the man:dS, MlWng that In ~ or the 5WC UllpOI1UlI in the zklb;d food ~ equatIOn. ~ 'J various effortS III agnculture
mo
and rural developmmL the state would be . , excellcnl: Cllnlhdate fOf !he SlIIII& of a Stapk:: Crop Procasing Zone (SCPZ), wlucb IS pan of the agricultural nnsronnabOn agenda of !he Fcder.lI Minisby of AgriculhR. In hl5 respome, Governor Aregbesola. Ills gJlun!de 10 the IIWlIgcmml or the BOA for its 5uslluned support for the Sutc. CI~
He pmrruscd that the DCllI phase of!he c:d1abontioo would be W2 btllion, notmg thai the state reqwred. III lea&l, W2.S biU.on for the 2012 famungscuon. The govanor expressed the beher that ago. w]tur'e held the key to !he nabon 'S ICconOflUc. emancipllUOh whIle PIcdgU18 hslleam's com· m:itmc:nl1O p.II Osun Stale til the fOfefron! o f !he n;,tioo's agncuItulllll devdopncnt.