The 2018 Agribusiness Innovation Conference and Expo, according to FCT Minister of State Dr. Ramatu Tijjani Aliyu, would help complement the administration’s efforts to enable farmers to take agribusiness to a global level.
This statement was delivered by the Minister during a dinner hosted by the FCT Administration to promote the hosting of the 3rd Agribusiness Innovation Conference and Expo in 2022.
The conference, according to Aliyu, has evolved into a forum for farmers and investors to network with Agro-allied enterprises and learn about new technology and procedures that will help them adopt global best practices in all aspects of agricultural production and processing.
She went on to say that the administration has prioritized creating opportunities in the agriculture sector in order to engage the teeming population in meaningful undertakings.
She added that, stakeholder synergies are essential to enable efficient and sufficient food production while also providing social equality and threat mitigation.
According to him : “It is a responsibility that must be addressed collectively and not just by government alone. With this in place, we will continue to grow our economies together, eradicate poverty, reduce unemployment and youth restiveness, thereby entrenching food security”.
On his part, the FCTA Permanent Secretary, Mr. Olusade Adesola, said the agricultural sector has continued to be among the contributors to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country.
He added that the sector had provided the needed foreign exchange earnings, the foundation upon which the initial infrastructural development of Nigeria was built.
Adesola maintained that the convergence of Agribusiness entrepreneurs and exhibitors in Abuja would further open the doors of opportunities to farmers to acquire new skills and technologies that would help boost production and processing activities.
While allying the fears of business concerns about security situation in the FCT, the Permanent Secretary assured investors that the administration was working closely with the relevant security agencies and community leaders, to promptly neutralize any emerging security threat.