•Says action scandalous
From Okwe Obi, Abuja
Plateau State Governor, Caleb Muftwang, has flayed major hotels for importing irish potatoes and beef from South Africa, when his state produces sufficient quantity of the cool-season crop.
Muftwang, who described the development as a scandalous capital flight, spoke when he visited the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, yesterday in Abuja.
He also frowned at the exportation of Nigerian yams disguised as produced in Ghana because, according him, Nigeria failed in packaging and standardisation.
He said: “It is scandalous that the major hotels in Nigeria still import Irish Potatoes from South Africa. This is the fact and it should not be. It is a scandal that the big hotels still import beef from South Africa.
“I think we can change the narrative. It is a scandal that our yam is being exported to America as produced in Ghana simply because we failed in packaging and standardisation.”
The governor, who said the country must look beyond the depleting fossil fuel revenue and focus on agriculture, assured Nigeria of his determination to shore up the revenue of country through massive investment in agriculture.
“I want to said that for us on the plateau we have come to a point where we are not paying lip service to agriculture. We have come to a point where agriculture is a do-or-die affair for us. Our future is tied to our success in agriculture and therefore, we are taking it very seriously.
“We are looking at how we can boost our capacity. Like you know we feed Nigeria with Irish Potatoes. We want to take it beyond where it is and we want to realise the full value chain of a product like Irish Potatoes.
“I am sure that with the leadership of the minister and cooperation of the various sub-nationals, these are stories we can change.
“We do not have an option. We do not have the time because fossil energy is depleting whether we like it or not. And revenues from fossil energy will continue to be problematic.
“And therefore we must be able to key into the global space and contribute our quota to the global shortage of food.
“Like most economists will tell you that the future of the world in terms of wealth in terms of food security is in Africa.
“And therefore, we must take the business of agriculture seriously. We are strategising about things like horticulture.
“We want to put Nigeria on the map, the horticulture map of the world. And, so, we are looking forward to how to collaborate with departments in the ministry, for the kind of initiative .
“I am sure there is a lot of expertise in this ministry that is yet to be fully utilized. We will be glad to have those inputs.
“Of course, the department of farm inputs, I am sure will be knocking on your doors very soon. We will be looking at how we can also leverages on mechanisation which is the way to go.
“We we were looking at how we can move from subsistence agriculture to mechanised agriculture.
“One critical area that we are paying attention to is in produce marketing. It has been one of the challenges with agricultural country state in particular.
“It will interest you to know that one of the most exotic conferences producer of the plant, but we could not go forward because of lack of market and we are putting in arrangements in place to ensure that we tackle the challenge of marketing.
“We will looking at how to collaborate with the ministry. Of course, as we pursue these lofty goals, we must also not forget that the rural areas still need intervention in whatever plans the rural department has.
“One of the challenges we are facing particularly is that we have a lot of ungoverned spaces and terrains that are quite inaccessible due to the nature of the topography of the plateau. That is why we are called Plateau anyway.
“We need to be able to make extra arrangements more than some other states to be able to access these areas, not only for purposes of security, but to be able to bring out farm produce.
“So developing the rural areas become quite critical for us. And I am glad to hear what the Minister said about the President’s initiative of livestock.
“As a matter of fact, we have been contemplating the idea of splitting the ministry of agriculture into two so that we have particular attention on livestock.
“Because again, as you know, our climate is conducive. We still produce the best eggs in the country.
“They have the longest shelf life because of our weather. And the same thing in trying to give a hub for beef. These are areas we are looking at, and so livestock production becomes critical for us.
“As I tell the minister that in Wase local government alone may have the potential to hold the land. But the land is plagued by insecurity.
“So, we are soliciting the assistance of the federal government particularly in dealing with that issue, and recover that area. Not only are we recovering the land for purposes of livestock, it will be interesting to know that we can grow some nappy grass for exports.
“We can earn a lot of money, that is why I said we need this collaboration.
“I think Ministry of Agriculture holds the solution for a lot of Nigeria’s problems. Let me encourage you, therefore, to rise to the occasion, cooperate with the minister and his team and make sure that every technical support he needs from the technology is well provided, because as a nation, we must come out strong.
“We have no business being classified as a hungry vision. And when we have to receive food items from countries outside Nigeria.
“I think it doesn’t do well to our psyche. We should be giving to others and not receiving,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Minister said the country was ready for the wet season farming, saying that the donation of fertilizer by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), was a morale booster.
He, however, complained about the shrinking landmass and growing population for the cultivation,. adding that collaboration was needed to address the challenge.
“Our landmass is shrinking and we have to collaborate assiduously with the state governments to bring us out of this challenge as we face as a country in terms of food security.
“So, with the little space we have and a growing population, we have climate and insecurity, we need to increase our yield.