Food security: Nigeria targets additional 20 million metric tonnes In a statement made avaU· able to National Mirror yester·
M eSHACK I OEHEN
day, the Minister of Agricul-
he launch of the Agrl· cultural Transformation Implementation Council (ATIC) by President Goodluck Jonathan will target the production of an additional 20 mJl· lion metric tons of food by 2015.
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In the same vein. the agri· culture transformation programme of the government
ture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwunml Adesina, said further that N60bn will be In· jected Imo the economy from the partial substitution of wheal flour with high quality cassava and sorghum flour in bread and confectioneries. while an additional N356bn will be saved from the nation's
Is expected to create about 3.5 drive for self-sufficiency In millJon new jobs over the next five years. whUe over NSOObn of additiona1 Income will be added to Nigerian farmers and agi'"O"processors, Including prl. vate sector entrepreneurs.
rice production within five yean;.
Adeslna said a demonstration of the strong support of the Agricultural Transforma· tion Agenda by PresideD! Jona-
than, Is reflected In the inau- that agriculture Is no lODger guration of the Agricultural a development activity it (ago Transformation Implementa- riculture) Is now treated as a tion Council. which he added business to create wealth a nd will help drive Nigeria's new )0'" bold plan to transform the ag00 the Agricultural Trans· ricultural sector, bnprove agri- formation Implementauon cultural productivity. sustain- Council (ATlC). the mlnister ability and prosperity: explained the councll is ana· According to !.be mlnlster. tional level body with powers ensuring that every Nigerian and authority to drive the Agrihas Increased food security Is cultural Transformation Agenone of the highest priorities da alone the value chains. for the PresideD! bas, saying fur- the purpose of achieving food ther that the councll will help security, employment generathe administration to priori- tion. effective response to the lise solutions that wUl unlock raw·material needs of ag~in· opportunities for millions of dustrles. value addition, storNIgerian farmers, processors age of agricultural produce and agrlbusinesses. He added and marketing.
Accon' ing to him, the ATiC wUl be I!haired by President Goodlucl J onathan. and wlll also include VIce President Namadl Sanbo; the Coordinatlng Minister of the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi OkonjD-Iwea la; and the Min· Ister of .'griculture, who wUl serve as.he coordinator of the council. Other members of !.be council, according to the agrlc minister, includes tlte fo,1.inister of National Plannlng, Dr Shamsudee.o Usman, the Minister of Trad£ and Investment; Dr. Olusegun Aganga and that of Power; Prof. Barth Nn<\ll amongst others..
Brazil, Nigeria trade hits $8.9bn S TANLEY IHEDlGBO
rade between Brazil and Nigeria has bit sa.9bn, the Secretary General of the Nigerian-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce and lndustry (NBCCn, Chief Leo Ezebuiro. has disclosed. Ezebuiro, who spoke with NaJwnal Mirror in interview yesterday; however expressed worry over the low trade rela· tlons between the two coun· tries. saying the situat.ion needs to be corrected urgently through resuscitating of theNBCCI. He added that both coun· tries have many thlngs in common. being biggest nations in their respective continents, and should Intensify efforts to increase bilateral trade.. Secretary General said: "The trade volume is about $B.9bn over five years from
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2006 to 2011. Brazil's exports automobUes. chemical, elec· tronics, whlle Nigeria'S u:. ports to Brazil are oU palm. hide and some stones, OU,el' things. "'We are talking about bUateral relationship with Nigeria and Braztl • which has lin· gered for so much, and It has became a challenges for us, be.cause the Federal Government eannot all do everything, there should be separation of dulles, that is why. we have taken It upon ourselves to rt$uscltate the chamber", he said. In order for Nigeria as a huge consumer market to create and sustain links with Brazilian industries, he sold that the chamber would Increase information (low. and in corUunctlon with some Bra zilian business federations. ofllanise periodic match·makIng meetings for COIllI18nles., either In Nigeria or BrazU.
Govt commissions N1.13b rural electrification project in Akwa-Ibom J OHN U WE
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Federal GtNenunent's
promise d improved power supply rece.ivo:I added impetUS ~as the multi million naira Ibedullbiako rural electrification projeas in Akwa IIxm is <XlIlllIlissioned by the Minister of State for ~r. Me IshaIru.
_us
Isbaku said !be eIedriflca· tiOD project executEd with the Japanese grant aid eX 574,000,(0) Japanese Yen (NU3bn) and Nl36.S7m CDllDterpart fimd1ng
by the Federnl
was to
GoYmunent,
oomplemeu the efforts
rL the Nlgerian
Ga\wnment in the executioo ti the on.going National Rural Eledrifk:ation
_(/<RE\').
TheBoostcrStation wlthnew tranSmissIon lines and transformer.; \\"ere constructed at Ibedu/Ibinikot dan as an tntB'· vmt:im prQject by the Japanese grant in -aid programme for rural electrifkat:ion in Nigeria. The minlster cmnmended the
lnten.mtion ~ tB! Japanese Ga\wnment in complementing Nigeria's efforts in electrifying the rural areas especially those in relativcly dlfIicult and inaoCl'SSible terrains which make the
electrifIrntioo via the natlooal gridalmost impossible. He noted that the electriDca. tlan of the Ibedu IbJ.akot clan will DO doubt enhance the socio. eoonomic activities rL the 14 vil......1 tI<ol _ Jkot Out. Unyehe, IdlabaJdOOu.ldikpa and
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L,.R: Minister ~ Trade IIfId Investment, ...... OIuagun Aganga; MJnl&tar", Mines and Steel D£IIelopment. Wr. Mus. Md M~ DIredor, Nestl. ~ Mr. Martin Wooinough, III • workahap on Enhandng !he Pn:xJuctIvtty of N5geria',
In-
duab1es, OI'ganlMd by Ihe Mlnltiry at Trade Md Inve:stmwd.. In L.egos _ yesterday
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FG eannarks N14bn for new secretariat rojects O LUFEMI A OEOSUN •. ABWA
he Federal Government yesterday saki that It has earmarked NI4hn for the construcUon of six new Federal Secretariats in all the geo-politlcal :woes of the country.
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This Is even as It disclosed that over N4.8billion had been spent on urban renewal and slum upgrading projects under the Millennium Development Goa] (MDG) programme. Minister rL Lands, Housing and Urban Development. foots. Ama Pepple who spoke at ihe 0ngoing Ministerial press briefing in Abuja. added that the consauction c{ new secretariats would not affect the existing ones. She further explained that there were ongoing efforts being carr1ed OUI by the ministry to caJ"L
a
ry out rehabilitation and maintenanccof the twenty three existing Federal Se.cretarlals across the
lion has • projects. SpeakinG on the imperatives of the housing delivery sector:
a"m"" According to her. the states that
Pepple ooted that it has the paten· tiallO sped up eoonomic growth as much tJ:S oU sector if well deveI·
would benefit fi'om this housing projects, include Anamhra{South East), Gombe<Nonh East).Bayelsa(South South),Osun (South w.st). N~orth Central and Zamfara(Nonh West).
Under the MOO programme. the minister also disclosed that the ministry had executed over 259 projects in various partS rI the country at a total cost rI N4. 892,299,500. The projects, the mln1ster dlsclosed furthet: CIOVInd areas such as publ1c building and ulililles, with m projects, construcdool
oped. She said, ~ The hoUSing sector has as rruch. or even a greater potential than theoU sector In unleashing -apid growth and development (Jf the economy: OUr citIes are UIO centres of economlc growth and oentres for commcroe and wealth aealion and for the promotion rI healthy living envi-
ronmen!! _" On its propensity to steer up employment generation, she ex· plained that the funding cf sustainable bQllSIng oouId _
upgrading d access roads (56 projects, slwn clectrtficatlon (ot
investmerus In the production rI bulldlng maierials. which would· in turn l'enerate employment in
prQjects), while water and sanita-
the eooIlOJIl)l