AGRIC
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BUSINESSDAY: www.businessdayonline.(om
Wednesday 07 November 2012
'Farmers will meet demand for cassava flour by 2013' A lot of work is gOtng on towards meeting the massIVe demand for cassava derivatives such as starch, gam, and more importantly, the demand fOf cassava flour that would be created when the rnandata<y indusion of 40 percent cassava flour in bread takes full fOfce. SEGUN ADEWUMI. president. N'9"rian Cassava Growers Association (NCGA). in this intelView with OLUYINKA ALAWODE, speaks on moves to get cassava farmers to meet this potential demand Excerpts: C •
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~Isomebody
mUll show NlgNil thAI we can grow food on large
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fhal can trigger industrial r,,"'olullon lIlnee lis Indu~1rI.1 \150 ~r!" numerous II has lhe potential to r;enentll' I'vt'n mort' rPVnlU(' than
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already had abnul I,OOOhecta'" of farmland, ~o I wenl Inlo ca!lava farming on my 0 w n In Ondo Slate . For aboul seven yells I was cuilivaling 1,000 hectares of ClllsaVII annually I had I garrl processing fa ctory Ih,1 supplied the staple 10 the strateRlc 8ralns
crude all. Also.
man;SI.I~llIch as ~ni,. lafun. IUfu and upkJca. can be I'roduced rrom 11
focus on cassava by the (U flt'nl goyemmmishows thai the ludl"fS h3\'e rood RCUrity
as I priority. Ourauodadof1 on lis pan is soIns 10 t'nli&htt'n the
world
.bout
N"werian foods. Our indi~nous
(DOd, aff' ~UI~ to the one5 we imporl On inut' of ca"IVI chips. Wf' .. dvise the
govrommnu to first (.("i1i1alt' m • .s~IVf! producuon of about 5 mlDion Inru fnr thtft: )"!ars. Cassaova chips Iff' fwll dried cassava. lhee muse ~ valor addition bdore they are uporred rn~rililn~nmgiliem
m Ihal5UIle l~mlnlstcrofapicu}ture.
Akin Adesina, told us the imponed rice being consumfit In Ihls country was Iww!sted about 15 yeus ago In Mian countrla. n.e goyonmmt of those natJons keep meir fa!'men worldn" buyi"l food from them and slori"l thai: Is IOod ~;urity. NigniacanahododlaL If we ~ 5 miUkm tOfU of cassava chrp.. we can insist on value addition before releasing tlwm to other nations. Ml!dinB ftmand We arc also rahlng 'cas~ava' ent~prcneurl to p~ (;a$$lIYa tuben Into prri.Slra it hasashdflllieof
he would fncu s on developing Igrlculture. Moreover, I
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alieasl thl~ yean. garTi can ~ kept In the ~tnllegk: grains r!:Sf'rv,"'!; To mt'CI the 10011 demand for cassava flour 10 be U5l'd In the bakin8 orbmtd. the r~: Govmuome has g:rac:iotNy procured 18 flour mill", each of which will prore-.'\' 240 tnns of caS5aVI 10 flow dally. We ate going 10 stnaacr cassava farms around Ih~ kK;.don, 110 lhal lhere would be no shorlage of CUS8YlI In !be Ilour miIIs. By 20 13. then- ",",I}d be enough c:asAVlI for tht' flour millt.. 1 am confident thai ehls timr around, tht' cauava Inclusion programme will IUcaed In the pasl there WII nn communlcallon between the farmers Ind the poUcymakers. bUI now they.meel with us and hear
""'They ........ Iho
give us Incenllve s 10 produce cassava nn a la rge sca~ So. nUl plandngseason. ",~art'
goinS In Illanl Idditlonll
750,000 hKl11"t'$ nf cassan,. If""", Kfl22ron~ pn ht'dlln', 15mllllonlonsnf ca" _saY'I In addition 10 whal we already plamannually. Any ca_ H ava thai Is nol proceurd Inlo noul due to nne reason or the olher will be mnpped up and proce.St"d Inlo g.Hri Both thc CIl-UaYB nour lind gilrrl proceSilng fa ctories will be located close 10 farms. This is because cassavi luber has .boul 70 percenl water conlcnl and Ie Is nOI economical Iransportlng over long distances when the subslance 10 be goe from it Is )uSl about 25 pen:f!Ilt on the thallsO\~r
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Slutlngnul I 1m a pastor, I oversee churches, bUI around 1999/2000 when the former President DI~n ObiIsanjo ClIme 10 poW1!'r, I reckooed that bel"" farmer.
T h , mlSsh'elless of the farm Imacted the pt6S. I was fealured In the media and a.~ a r!!Wit 1 was Invited by Ihe Dndo Siale goyernmenl I was made Ihe chlirml n of Canava GIOWt'IS' Assoclilion in Ondo 'ilate. 'iubs~uently, I was In¥tled 10 the rnHling oftJKo NCGA I sum;t'Sled a p~mme should be~lopcd lo~t cassava production and markrtin&- So they made me the chairman of the lechnlcal committee. I dcvcloped the OIIMaVII nour inclusion progrnmme which was to Slart In July 2006 Bue It was mismanaged by governmenl ornclll, I re,igned from Ihe eGA Ind conlinued cassava production unit) Ihls yea r when I was aglln Inviled by the nal10nal body of the assoclilion We had In e~n and theyeiected me IS president.
Young entrepreneurs task government on high bank lending rates lORIS UMAR MOMOH. Mabo
N.
govcmmf'Ol$ I'll Iii
leveb IU' plannlnlt thtit t£onomlc nlirl~ awav from over dcpe-nde-ncr nn 011, youlh, under Ihe UKi. nf luninl Otamber InlcmllMnai nf Ni!t'""a (IClN) h<M' f1IlI~ on the I'ftIcnd C'.ovemmtnllo prevail on comm"cial banb 10 limit lhodr irndln" Inle-resl r.11!'~ 10 .011'111 and mf.'dlum f'Oll"t'ptf'Onirli
DlYld Eka. tht 20 12 nallonal J'fI!"Iktenln( ION, woo madtlMcaU InAllba during Iht' Iroup'~ 40lh nalional mnfcrcncc. ykl hlp:h ItondlllR inl"C'<1 ralH by cnmmeKial banb In Ih" £ounllY havt ~n unfavourahlt 10 YtIung tnlreprcnnll'l In an Inlenu'w with BllslnenOIlY, Fkl a~ktd ICO\Tmmt'nllo crcalttnllhhnp: emirtonmenllNI woukt uq," In n'lIl Wowth by Itdd..-inll: Ct11l1ln la_ Ind pol~ IhiIl haw bHn millll"Intt Iplo~I Iht KfOWlh of ~ma" and mfitillm ~alr Indll~lrlf"li In Ihf'counlry 'Wf' all" ptnjecllnlllhlll Iht«' I, • shih from oil. Ind oil 15 no lonp:er Iht bt'dlock for economic empowoetn'lf'nt lhal h"''hywcwaollodcvdop the mioowl nf people. O1ostl~' our yount! peoplf', lhal Ihf'rc I~ nttd for them 10 acquire cnlfcprcnelluhlp Ikllls 10 bf' btller and Ichltye Ihelr aim 10 crnpo~..1!'f Ihenuelv~
econOinicaJly "For enmple. In Nigeria. we- IIff' doinll double-digit lcnd1nt! rales In Europe, ClIO bnnow II Iln"le dill! of two or three ptlcent per Bonum bul you lin! aware of how much we Ilre lendinl in Nigeria.. YOUIll peoplc cannot IIIOW Whclf' do I lei Ihc mnney 10 SIan a bustOf'Sf atld payi"lsuch huge colilieral?
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'0111 bln~~alt ctf'Qu'd 10 pm"~1c ~'m If'Im W'fVIorf"l lind noI fnf lonlt I"," ~ ~n, Iherr I~ thr nf'rd Inl lIov"lnmrnt 10 I"" .. I'll Ihf' IrndlnK pollrlr~ a~ wrll I' rTf'alr alll'nlll" ror pf'Op!1' 10 !eally cnmpl'lr In _ Irtt f'ntf'fJlnw ~Ie-rn " 1 ht' vOlllh. I'll" tht mOllf'n of Iht' rennom, anlt Iht Ntllrrlan 1I0vrfnmrnt net'd, 10 undf'tSland Ihl. lapan t, hl~'tnll p,oblt'm. loday brcau'f' Ihry h:",,1' a populatKIn Ih.1 I. ~nl!;: lind Ihf'yltl' findtnR WoW, In m"k" Iht' voun~ !'"llIIlanon 10 MW' oppoflunltv to 1110'" lind d~I"P Ihrm'W'l_ "\l!lIrrla "UI~l 111,0 knnw Ihal we- ~11 11 hnl' a Ilrlll' nllmhl'! of unf'lnl"lo\'f'd VOllnS I"f'oplt whn do nnl r~·t'n hllvr thl' rialfnrm "' 1M ""p"nunllv In Iff""'· 'Ih ..1 oppnllllnlt,· and ,.Ialfnrm nf'f'd 10 hr rrtalffl" Fbfur1hn ~:d.I,I ... ~., of Iht' conlf'll'nrl"!! thf'me 'fTC-'!' EnrrrT'IIQ'ltn,II':tItw.';J\ 10 Erooomic (;In''lh' "''' 10 tnnlllragl' yOllnl[ J'f"OI"II-" ItlN, hI" salll, b munl 101 l'oulh. brlwren Ih .. all"'- of UI ... n, p<Jinllnll: OU! Ihal Ihr VOlllh,wnukt hr.,f!'nltlhf'nM and hrll", ahlf' In uhtf'lIf' Iht'll qool lI0ftl, In Itft tr Ih" art {'('(In')mk'1tJlvf1nT'""?rf'd "JCIN Is II If'adtt~hlp devtlopmenl nl':lInl'"llon Ihll rocu~~ on df'\'tlnplnR younll pf'oplt hrlwecn th,. aR" of 18-40 "hrr~ "1" ~ Ihtm ~k1n. lind f'-'lI";plhcm fnr thf'fulmr \\'e-dl'\'l'inplhrmtn beorome ~Cllil,,"~ In thlMr \'II~cnmmunttlf'lil>rrltllW'
we in InN believe lhat once we build Of malt' Indindual. ~uong. wc cln bund ~Irnnlt communillcs; and buildlnK .. ronK cnmmunlllM Wf' can hulld Ittonjlt nil lion.: lind buIIt:ltn!IlIJOOg nauon.~",'f' can ka~ I"W'da"lng peart and hf'rter wvTld ~