FCT set to transform fisheries sector to farmers’ cash-cow

By stanley Onyekwere

The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has restated commitment to transform the fisheries sector to become a cash cow for the farmers in the territory and the national economy.

The Mandate Secretary for the FCTA Agriculture and Rural Development Secretariat (ARDS), Malam Abubakar Ibrahim, made the pledge at the commemoration of the International Year of Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture (IYAFA) in the FCT, held in Abuja.

Ibrahim, who ARDS Director of Administration and Finance, Malam Ishaq Sadeeq expressed readiness of the secretariat to continue to advocate and pursue the implementation of innovative programmes that would help in enhancing effective utilization of the rich water bodies that abound in the FCT.

He noted that there was no gainsaying the fact that fish was a very important agricultural product that was largely consumed

Retired Gwagwalada Area Commander advises security personnel on patience, endurance

By Usman Shuaibu

The retired Gwagwalada Area Commander in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), ACP Nana Bature Garba, has advised the security personnel to always cultivate the habit of patience and endurance at their working place.

She also urged the security agencies to work in conjunction with other security organizations for better synergy in Gwagwalada and its environs.

ACP Nana Bature Garba, who gave the advice while speaking with Peoples Daily correspondent after the send-forth ceremony organized by the Police Personnel of the command on her retirement age on Tuesday in Gwagwalada.

She said the Personnel of the command organized the sendforth party for her due to the good relationship and cooperation at the command.

She said: “The relationship with my personnel is not that of police duty but mother and children. It is based on this that my personnel organized the send-forth party for me”, due to its rich nutritional and medicinal values.

She, therefore, charged the personnel to be sincere in their dealing and prayed for them to excel in life.

ACP Garba hailed the administration of Gwagwalada Area Council as well as the residents for the co-operation accorded to her during her service, saying that she would live to remember the people of Gwagwalada.

According to him: “It is not a surprise that the sector is growing at an alarming rate as more and more Nigerians engage in fish production not just for the nutritional value, but economic benefits associated with it.

“ It is estimated that a very large percentage of Nigerians, mostly youths venture into fisheries production annually. While this scenario would have been seen as a positive development, the sad narrative is the fact that more than 90 per cent of these farmers still operate at subsistent and small-scale levels.”

He adds: “As you are aware, the United Nations, declared 2022 as the International Year of Artisanal Fisheries (IYAFA) with the objective of drawing global attention to the important role that small-scale fish farmers and fish workers play in human well-being, food security, poverty eradication and in the sustainable use of natural resources.

“ Member nations are expected to use the occasion to show commitment and take practical actions to support and promote fishery activities.

“ The event we are therefore witnessing today is consistent with that worthy declaration as well as the theme of the event which is Building a Global Safety Net for Small-scale Artisanal Fisheries & Aquaculture.

“He, however, bemoaned that fish farmers in Nigeria lack the professional expertise and investable funds to enable them acquire quality inputs required to help them transit easily from household to commercial production to bridge the yawning gap between demand and supply and reduce the huge foreign exchange that was spent on fish importation.

“These are some of the issues that the programmes of the Secretariat are aimed at addressing. The story of Fisheries Development in the FCT is one that is characterized by steady growth and improvements in terms of production capacity, quality processing and access to markets and competitiveness

“Part of the strategies that we have adopted is to encourage local fish farmers organise themselves as a body so that they can more easily benefit from the various fisheries support programmes of the Secretariat.

“So far, over 400 fishery cooperative groups have registered with the secretariat, and we have been working closely with the various Fishery Associations such as the Cat Fish Farmers Association of Nigeria, (CAFAN) to promote diversification into other fish varieties”, he stressed.

Ibrahim recalled that in 2022, the secretariat organised series of workshops to promote Tilapia production as well as on the utilisation of locally sourced materials for feed formulation which is cost efficient.

Also, the secretary said in 2021, as part of the pet project of the FCT Minister of State, Dr Ramatu Aliyu, the secretariat constructed from scratch, the FCT Aquaculture and Allied Trades Centre for Youth and Women at Kuka village in Kwali Area Council, established to train women and youths in modern fish production techniques.

Earlier in her welcome remarks, the Director, Fisheries and Aquaculture Department, Mrs Ifeoma Okeke, described lack of training among others as the major challenges facing the growth of Fisheries in the FCT. Okeke noted that although the sector is small in scale but big in value, as it has contributed so much food security and nutrition, poverty eradication and job creation.

“We assembled experts in the areas of interest to talk on processing for export, fish farming as a business, facilities available in our financial institutions and how to access them as well as prospects and challenges in the industry.

“Also, we recognised men and women that have contributed immensely to the growth and development of the industry in the FCT, which was crowned with empowerment scheme”, she added.

CBN Advises Central Bankers To Ensure Tighter Regulation of banks

• Pushes for financially healthy Banks

By Abubakar Yunusa

TheGovernor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele, has urged the Governors of Central Banks and other African financial sector regulators to be more vigilant in their regulatory and supervisory roles to forestall any run on banks in their respective jurisdictions.

Mr. Emefiele gave the charge on Wednesday, March 15, 2023, at the opening of the 2023 African Central Bank Conference held at the Global Leadership

Center, Johannesburg, South Africa.

Speaking on the current global dynamics and specific policy developments in Nigeria to address emerging shocks, he advised central banks on the continent to draw lessons from the recent failure of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and Signature Bank in the United States of America, by putting in place regulations that will prevent any run on banks in their countries.

Emefiele, while sharing Nigeria’s experience in regulating banks, noted that the threats posed to the financial system necessitated the release of new guidelines and regulations to tackle potential infringements and, in the process, protect depositors’ funds as well as promote greater transparency in the sector.

According to him, regulators must be alive to their responsibilities by ensuring that banks under their regulatory watch are financially healthy and do not suffer a similar fate as the Silicon Valley Bank, which, until its collapse recently, catered to many of the world’s most powerful tech investors.

Topics discussed at the conference, declared open by the Prime Minister of Namibia, the Rt Hon. Saara Kuugongelwa, centred around “African Solution for African Problems” and “Africa’s Seat at the Table,” among others. Other deliberations at the twoday confab, also addressed by Lesetja Kganyago, Governor, Reserve Bank of South Africa, bordered on “Calibrating for a New World Order” and “Unlocking Development Finance and Mobilising Institutional Investors for Development in Africa”.

NiMet holds FCT 2023 seasonal climate predictions in Gwagwalada

By Usman Shuaibu

TheNigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development on Tuesday organized a one-day workshop on the 2023 Seasonal Climate Predictions (SCP) for farmers in Gwagwalada of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

In an interview with newsmen at the occasion, a Director from the

Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Engr. Abdullahi Abubakar said the purpose of the workshop was to enlighten the farmers on how to monitor and get acquainted to weather changes to enhance productivity.

He said the ministry would continue to gear towards providing inputs for farmers during the cropping season.

The Director, however, pointed out that the ministry would always support the NiMet in providing knowledge for farmers on the need to carry out their farming operations successfully every year and described the workshop as a successful one.

Also speaking, the General Manager in charge of Agrometeorology at NiMet, Mallam Haruna Zakari said the NiMet would continue to collaborate with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to provide quality seed for farmers in the Federal Capital

Territory and Nigerian as a whole. He pointed out that the management of NiMet would not hesitate to enlighten the farmers so as to boost their morals during the rainy season.

The Nimet General Manager of Agrometeorology revealed that the workshop targeted at one hundred and fifty participants in this year seasonal climate predictions.

By Vivian Okejeme, Abuja

Justice James Omotoso of a Federal High Court,Abuja fixed May 22, for hearing in a suit instituted by a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, Ugochukwu Uchenwa, seeking to stop the conduct of elections and examination on Saturdays in the country.

The court on Wednesday, granted President Muhammadu Buhari and the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) leave to regularize thier processes, filed by their counsel, Osasogie Uwaifo.

In his argument, Uchenwa had through his counsel,