Nigeria Can Earn $400bn Annually from Farm Produce Export

Dr. Adewunmi Adesina, Minister of Agriculture

By Chinedu Eze

With proper interface between farmers and exporters, zero tariff on export and government’s incentives, Nigeria can be exporting farm produce worth $400 billion annually in the next four years.

Already, over 50 per cent of the yam eaten all over the world come from Nigeria, but unfortunately the produce is not exported directly out of Nigeria. It is moved to Ghana by road from where it is exported to Europe and other parts of the world as Ghana farm produce.

The reason for this is that Ghana has zero charges for export of farm produce

and because the export system for cargo is not well developed in Nigeria with the attendant high charges, Nigerian farmers transport their produce to Ghana for export.

Australia and New Zealand are in high demand of yam but Ghana is known as major yam producer in the world while all the yams accredited to Ghana come from Nigeria, including that yam sold in Salisbury, London as Ghanaian yam.
President, Association of Foreign Airlines Representatives in Nigeria

(AFRAN), Kingsley Nwokoma, an export in cargo airline operations, told THISDAY that the in-coming government could take advantage of the low prices of crude in the international market to develop an alternative source of foreign exchange through the development of agri-cargo export.

He said Nigeria has the potential to grow agricultural produce for export and within the next four years, could be exporting farm produce worth over $400 billion.

He said the in-coming government must have to develop a framework and a target that must be met at a given period of time.

He said, first, government must have to introduce zero charges on exports and also reduce the charges on importation of cargo.

According to him, advantage of the lowering of charges on imported cargo is that it would provide an incentive for cargo airlines to bring goods to Nigeria and then airlift agricultural produce from Nigeria at no airport charges to other parts of the world.

This, he said,  will in turn bring down the cost of imported goods while they airlift Nigerian farm produce and introduce them to demanding markets in different parts of the world.

“Nigeria has the potential to earn more than what they presently earn from oil as foreign exchange from agricultural produce. But for this to be actualised there are things government must do. Government will have to sit down with the farmers and agree on quality control; explore the market to know what is in demand and the dynamics of demand and supply. Kenya today exports 100 per cent agricultural flowers to Europe because it studied the demand market; Nigeria can do the same.

“Government will also call cargo airlines and have interlining and everybody will have to agree on what is to be marketed.
 As a cargo airline, if I am going to Jos to pick up cargo produce I will know the demand in Europe and other parts of the world. The airline needs to know the volume of export. Now, there are too many charges to be paid; there are too many agencies to pass through and there are too many encumbrances. Nigeria has so many farm produce to export including soya, yam, moringa seed, cassava, tomatoes, water melon, onions and many others,” Nwokoma said.

Culled from: http://www.thisdaylive.com