The Nation Newspaper

Category: Industry

  • Making Nigeria a global player in $10b shea industry

    Making Nigeria a global player in $10b shea industry

    With 16  producing states, Nigeria has the capacity to produce 325,000 metric tonnes of shea nut yearly. With that it can grab a huge chunk of the global market worth about $10 billion. The market is expected to hit $30 billion by 2020. Will investors tap into this potential to diversify the economy? CHIKODI OKEREOCHA and DAN ESSIET report. 

    As the push for economic diversification intensifies, Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Mr. Segun Awolowo, has suggested that Nigeria should leverage its nature-endowed comparative advantage in shea butter production and export to replace oil as  major revenue earner.

    Awolowo is seeking  more focus on the non-oil export sector, particularly agric products such as Shea. This, he said, would lead to a surge in Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

    At a conference in Abuja, Awolowo said global demand for shea butter was estimated at $10 billion, with a projection of hitting $30 billion by 2020. He noted that if the product is fully harnessed and quality control and standardisation of processing addressed, Nigeria might take a chunk of the huge global market.

    He said with 16 Shea producing states in Nigeria, the sector’s value addition to the economy in the form of inclusive and sustainable growth and wealth creation will be huge. He emphasised that if Nigeria becomes a competitive global player in shea production, it would give impetus to the current industrialisation push and lift millions out of poverty.

    These are not empty claims. Nigeria literarily seats on a shea butter goldmine. At the last count, for instance, Nigeria produces 325,000 Metric Tonnes (MT) of shea nut, making her world’s largest shea nut producer, according to Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).

    However, despite its capacity to earn foreign exchange, reduce poverty, empower women, and generate employ through the establishment of Small and Medium scale Enterprises (SMEs), Shea production and export, like many other agric products in the non-oil sector, remained neglected.

    Why shea industry is rebounding

    But a new thinking in favour of positioning Shea production and export to lead the renewed diversification drive may have taken centre stage. The Nation learnt that some developments both in the local and international scenes prompted hope of a possible rebound of the sector. One of them is the European Union (EU) directive that five per  cent of shea must be added to all confectionaries particularly chocolate.

    The fact that up to five per cent Shea content by weight is allowed under EU regulations in chocolate, other confectionaries and margarine, created a larger international market for shea products. And with wildly grown shea trees predominant in 21 states across the country, the belief is that Nigeria is on good stead to convert her comparative advantage in Shea product to competitive advantage.

    The United State (U.S) government, through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has also stepped up its support for Nigeria’s Shea industry. USAID does this through the Global Shea Alliance, which includes leading retail brands, Shea butter manufacturers, research institutions, ministries, regulatory bodies, and Shea butter producers and exporters.

    That is not all. The Nigeria Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) has also indicated its readiness to partner the USAID/Nigeria Expanded Trade and Transport (NEXTT) project and Technoserve to facilitate investments in Shea clusters. The essence of the partnership was to provide necessary processing facilities to the shea clusters spread across the 19 states where the shea trees are predominant.

    On the local scene, Shea butter, The Nation learnt, will feature prominently as one of the products for the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) initiative by the US government. AGOA, which allows import of agricultural commodities from eligible African countries including Nigeria to the US duty free, was recently extended by 10 years.

    The trade policy was supposed to have expired on September 30, last yaer, but the US Congress extended it for an additional 10 years until September 30, 2025. With the 10-year extension – the longest in the programme’s history – Shea butter is said to be one of the products Nigeria hopes to push to the US market.

    Perhaps more importantly, shea butter is one of the products that has been selected for the NEPC One-State-One-Product (OSOP) initiative, which seeks to develop one exportable product per state by leveraging on the area’s comparative advantage.

    Private sector operators to the rescue

     Apparently encouraged by the increased local and international focus on Shea production and export, PZ Cussons Foundation, last week, boosted the sector by formally handing over the PZ Nasara Shea-Butter processing facility to a women co-operative group in Tungan Wawa in Kontagora Local Government Area of Niger State.

    The facility consists of raw material store, structures for drying, roasting, blending, finished goods store, borehole and other equipment and machineries. According to the Foundation’s Trustee and former First Lady of Nigeria, Justice Fati Lami Abubakar, the project, executed by the Foundation, was an intervention to empower women economically through encouragement of rural enterprise.

    She explained that the new facility will help upgrade their traditional method of production and make them internationally competitive. It will also bring local processors under one umbrella and organise them into a more formal structure as enterprise.

    Niger State governor, Alhaji Abubakar Sani Bello commended the Board of Trustee of the Foundation for sitting the project in the state. He said it will support government’s effort at diversifying the state’s economy by enhancing productivity in agro allied endeavours at rural levels, help in poverty eradication and employment.

    The governor, who promised to encourage other corporate bodies to do the same, had earlier unfolded plans to distribute new improved shea seedlings to encourage more cultivation. The state government has also intensified efforts at sensitising private sector players and other development partners to awaken rural populace, especially women to tap into the huge potential in Shea production.

    For Director-General, Niger State Commodity and Export Promotion Agency, Mohammed Kontagora, the development of large-scale production of Shea butter in Nigeria would put Nigeria on the right path to diversifying the economy through strategic focus on the commodity’s export business.

    Kontagora, a member of Global Shea Alliance (GSA), said Nigeria, which presently accounts for 57 per cent of the global Shea market, could address its challenge of poverty through Shea butter export. “Nigeria stands a better chance of improving its economy through the processing and sale of Shea butter,” he said.

    He said one way to improve economies of communities is to take comparative advantage in Shea butter production by promoting Shea butter as a food and cosmetic product, noting that EU’s directive that five per cent of Shea must be added to all confectionaries particularly chocolate in the zone could effectively upscale the profile of the commodity’s business.

    “Shea butter has the potential to eradicate poverty. This is the sector I believe we all have to go back to,” the DG said. The Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Shea Origin Nigeria project, Mrs. Mobola Sagoe, has already done that. The Lagos-based entrepreneur has since carved a niche in the business of promoting beauty products. She has even gone a notch higher by assisting women get involved in shea butter production.

    Sagoe has been smiling to the bank by supplying cosmetics and export Shea butter to the United Kingdom (UK) and the U.S. The professional esthetician (skin care therapist), with 28 years’ experience, said the use of shea butter has been increasing in recent years as consumers are demanding better quality natural, minimally processed ingredients in personal care items and food.

    The budding entrepreneur said internationally, 90 per cent of Shea nuts are used in the food and confectionary industry for the production of cocoa butter equivalents or to improve confectionaries and margarines. She identified continued rising demand for cocoa butter equivalents (CBEs) due to rising world consumption of chocolate, high prices for cocoa, and strong demand for natural cosmetics and soaps as principal factors driving the demand for Shea.

    Sagoe said Nigeria is a leading producer of shea nut. This must be why, as part of her commitment to promoting a sustainable shea industry, she commenced the implementation of a pilot project to help women gather the Shea nuts and process them into butter.  She has since taken over the shea processing centre in Saki, Oyo State to train villagers, mostly women, on how to pick and process Shea nuts and make a living from them.

    Sagoe is being supported by USAID Nigeria Expanded Trade and Transport Programme (NEXTT). The entrepreneur, whose firm strives to lift women and their families out of extreme poverty through improved Shea production, said an investment of about N50, 000, prospective entrepreneurs could venture into nuts gathering for  big merchants.

    She said she intends to ensure that companies source products directly from producers in the villages, where villagers are  involved through manually collecting, sorting, crushing, roasting, grinding, and separating the oils from the butter and shaping the finished product.

    The raw nuts collected from them are processed into unrefined Shea butter. The villages also make money by selling the raw nuts to companies that extract, refine and export  the oil  abroad  for cosmetic purposes.

    Apparently in recognition of her exploits, Sagoe’s firm has been selected as global supply partners for Shea Radiance, an international organisation that supplies communities with locally fabricated equipment to help increase production output, relieve physical labour on production and provide a consistent and improved quality of Shea butter.

    Shea origin centres on a community-based cooperative and seeks to improve the livelihoods of women Shea nut producers by offering training, greater ownership within the supply chain and access to improved technology.

    However, the consensus of experts is that the success or otherwise of the current public-private sector collaboration and involvement in positioning shea butter production and export business to drive the ongoing economic diversification agenda depends largely on how far government encourages and sustains the initiative through deliberate policies, provision of necessary infrastructure and enabling environment.

  • How govt will grow MSMEs, create friendly business environment

    How govt will grow MSMEs, create friendly business environment

    The Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment has prioritised support for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), the Minister, Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah, has said.

    He said because MSMEs constituted over 60 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), his ministry was determined to support the sector to make it thrive.

    According to him, the support entails training, capacity building and ultimately, financing.

    Enelamah said this at the weekend while delivering the keynote address at the Fourth Great Place to Work Awards in Lagos.

    He said the ministry “will also seek to proactively attract investment both local and international.”

    H reaffirmed the ministry’s commitment at creating jobs and boosting productivity by fostering an enabling environment that supports the private sector and other stakeholders in creating jobs for the teeming population.

    Enelamah said: “This enabling environment would include consistent policies that would engender trust and help people plan their businesses better; corporate infrastructure and physical infrastructure such as power, roads, and rail etc. And of course, other infrastructure, which deals with institutions, rule of law, policies that you can rely on to build your businesses.”

    He also said the ministry’s commitment to creating an enabling environment involves progressively making it easier for businesses to operate.

    “We do not believe that the tag or the saying that Nigeria is a difficult place to do business, which is something we talk about quite often, is a good one,” he said.

    The Minister explained that his ministry will do this by implementing policies that remove the bottlenecks and roadblocks that make business hard or slow in Nigeria or unfriendly.

    “We want to create a friendly business environment. And I believe it can be done by a collective effort,” he said.

    Enelamah noted that having served in the private sector, one of the things that has become obvious is that creating a friendly business environment has to be a partnership of all the major stakeholders.

    He further said to boost productivity, his ministry plans to introduce sector policies that encourage local manufacturing and production of goods.

    “Our people are resourceful. When Nigerians go abroad they do very well. There must be something we can do better in our environment and that is something we are committed at doing,” he said.

  • AfDB Potato value chain project for Plateau

    AfDB Potato value chain project for Plateau

    The African Development Bank (ADB) potato value chain project that will boost potato farming is to take off in Plateau State soon, its Coordinator, Mr. Thaddeus Yelwa, has said.

    Speaking in Jos, the Plateau State capital on Monday, Yelwa said once the project begins, the state would produce Irish potato three to four times yearly.

    He said the project, aimed at improving the quality and quantity of potato farming, will empower farmers with improved seedlings and other farming tools.

    Yelwa added that the value chain project was an offshoot of Fadama ll programme, which ended in 2012.

    “Plateau is rated the leading state in terms of execution and utilisation of funds made available by ADB for Fadama ll projects. This is why the bank has also agreed to include us in the six states that will benefit from the additional funding,” he said.

    He said this time around the money would be channel into improving potato farming because the state produces it in high quantity.

    “This project will soon take off, and it will cover the aspect of production, storage, processing, which is value addition and also marketing of the product,” he said, assuring that with all modalities in place, Plateau will be producing potato four to five times in a year once the project begins.

    He further explained that with the project on course, potato farmers would smile home, as ordeals they usually encounter would be taken care of by the project.

    The Coordinator urged Plateau indigenes to go into potato farming, saying “it is a very lucrative and viable business”.

  • Courteville, iSON, Guinness Nigeria, others win Great Place to Work Awards

    Ten companies emerged winners of the ‘Great Place To Work (GPTW) Nigeria awards, over the weekend. These awards include: the Bright Spots award, a new category of awards which was introduced to recognise those organisations that are engaging with their employees, customers and communities in deep and authentic ways. Three organisations were recognised for this award; Courteville Business Solutions, SANOFI Healthcare and iSON BPO.

    Eight organisations made it to the list of Best Companies to Work for in Nigeria 2016. The organisations include: EMC Information System Nigeria Limited, which came tops, Courteville Business Solutions, which also won in the Bright Spots Award category, came second in the Best Companies to Work for in Nigeria. Other companies thst made the list include: Guinness Nigeria which emerged in the third place position, SC Johnson took the fourth position;  Microsoft Nigeria, Poise Nigeria; Konga.com,  and Chemical and Allied Products, in that order.

    This year’s edition, the fourth in the series, also had the “Best Practices Awards”. These are companies that delivered excellence in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), People Leadership, Employee Wellness, and introducing a new category under this, the organisation that caters to the needs of Millennials.

    iSON Group, one of the winners in the Bright Sport Awards category, also won the award for excellence in CSR, Konga.com, which came seventh in the Best Companies to Work for in Nigeria, smiled home with the Best Company to work for Millennials. Again, Courteville Business Solutions got the award for excellence in People Leadership while Guinness Nigeria Plc won the award for delivering excellence in Employees’ Wellness.

    The Minister for Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah, who was the Keynote Speaker at the event, described the award as “a welcome initiative and an avenue for inspiring greatness,” and challenged organisations to” rise beyond the ordinary to pursue excellence.”

    While commending Great Place To Work Nigeria for the initiative,  Enelamah congratulated all the winners and awardees, pointing out that it was his desire that the awardees will see the awards, not as an excuse to bask in their accomplishment, but as a challenge to do more and even better and to be role models for others.

    “Individuals, brands and even governments rise and fall on the strength of the trust that people repose in them. The world’s most valuable companies hold much of that value to what experts call brand equity, which in lay man’s term is simply a reflection of the quality of trust they engender in their stakeholders,” Enelamah said.

    He said the Federal Government has prioritised job creation and enhanced productivity, including the provision of an enabling environment for the private sector to thrive in form of

    consistent policies and infrastructure. He also said his ministry was working to provide the support Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) need to thrive, especially

    since they constitute over 60 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The support, he said, will entail training, capacity building and ultimately financing. “Finally we will also seek to proactively attract investment both local and international,” he added.

    The Chairman of Great Place To Work, Nigeria, Ghandi Olaoye, said: “A Great Place To Work is one where employees trust those they work for, take pride in the work they do, enjoy credibility of management, respect each other and take pride in the organisation they work for”.

    Olaoye, who was represented by a Board member, Kunle Malomo, pointed out that the companies that were recognised were those that have gone over and above, not just the rating by the Nigerian standard, but by the global ratings of Great Place To Work, based in San Francisco, in the US. He said the companies that were rated by their employees through a Trust Index and Culture Audit developed by the organisation, met the minimum requirements of being rated as best workplaces in the country

  • Low investor confidence worries private sector

    The confidence level of investors and private sector operators  in the economy is waning, the Director-General of Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Mr. Muda Yusuf, has said.

    Speaking with The Nation, he said except urgent and decisive action was taken, with direction given to the economy, investors will shy away from the economy and this will spell doom for the nation.

    While commending the purported truce between the executive and legislature on the budget, Yusuf said it is coming almost late, with the better part of the year gone.

    While commending the Town Hall Meetings by the government, Yusuf regretted that it was not inclusive.

    “We learnt traditional rulers, youths and market women were present, but we wondered how they missed out on the Central Bank of Nigeria whose Foreign Exchange (forex) policy is crippling the Organised Private Sector (OPS) and manufacturers,” he said.

    The LCCI helmsman said, for instance, that some manufacturers are currently having issues of credibility and integrity with their suppliers abroad because of challenges of remittances as a result of CBN’s policy.

    He despite this, government organised a Town hall meeting without inviting CBN. “We expected an all-inclusive participation with entrepreneurs, investors, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and members of the private sector to make it more robust,” Yusuf pointed out.

     

  • ‘Less than 1,000 companies ISO certified’

    Despite the administration’s emphasis on encouraging non-oil exports to diversify the economy, less than 1,000 Nigerian companies have achieved the (International Organisation for Standardisation) ISO 9001: 2008 Certification for Quality Management, a quality management practitioner and National President of the Association of Systems Management Consultants, Mazi Colman Obasi, has said.

    ISO 9001:2008 is accepted worldwide as the standard that defines quality, sets the criteria for a quality management system and provides the necessary framework to improve company efficiency, minimise risk and maximise opportunities.

    Obasi said ISO certification for a company’s products ultimately represents quality management system standard.

    According to him, the certification validates that a company’s quality processes and systems meet specific criteria. He said conformity to international standards helps reassure consumers that products are safe, efficient and good for the environment. International standards also bring technological, economic and societal benefits.

    He said, for instance, that they help to harmonise technical specifications of products and services, making industries more efficient and breaking down barriers to international trade. They also ensure that business operations are as efficient as possible, increase productivity and help companies access new markets.

    Obasi told The Nation that because most firms in Nigeria are yet to get ISO certification hence, they lack standardisation, the situation poses serious challenge for the current administration’s efforts at growing the non-oil economy. He said lack of standardisation due to lack of a national quality infrastructure is also damaging the nation’s economy and brand reputation.

  • Rotary South Africa delegates visit LCCI

    Rotary South Africa delegates visit LCCI

    A delegation of Rotary International District 9400 has visited the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) on Victoria Island, as part of the group’s Friendship Exchange programme.

    The team, which was visiting the country for the first time, was led by Mrs Koeki Quashie. She was accompanied by her husband, Kobla; the Honorary Consul of the Ghana High Commission in South Africa, and Chief Executive Officer, TravelVision, Mr Peter Bradshaw David.

    Mrs Quashie said they were on a two-week visit to the country, adding that though some of the group’s members had visited other countries, they had not been to Nigeria or any African country.

    She said: “We have never had any exchange in Africa. I have always wondered why we don’t do inter-African friendship exchange.  This exchange involved a lot of hard work but I am happy to say that it came to fruition.’’

    LCCI Director-General Muda Yusuf said his organisation and Rotary have some things in common – both are voluntary organisations and that some past presidents of LCCI were Rotarians. He said though opportunities and resources abound in Nigeria, the economy is facing some challenges.

    He,however, added that the government through its reforms policy is solving the problem. ‘’Nigerians are very enterprising people. We are everywhere,’’ he said.

    Others at the event were LCCI Director of Trade Promotions and International Relations Dele Alim; Head, BEST Unit, Mayowa Olanihun.

    On the Rotary District 9110’s team were Chairman,Friendship Exchange Mrs Onikepo Oshodi and Mrs  Uyi Sowobi, among others.

  • Chamber to drive agric with cooperative society

    Chamber to drive agric with cooperative society

    The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) plans to drive agriculture through its cooperative society to make farmers have easy access to loans.

    Chairman of LCCI Agric and Agro-Allied Group Mr. Adeola Elliott told  reporters in Lagos that the cooperative society is part of the chamber’s integrated agriculture project.

    “We have small farm holders scattered all over and they do not want to remain small farm holders all their lives. They are still small farm holders because their capacity to expand is limited and it is difficult for even banks to give loans to small farm holders. The cooperative society intends to bring all farmers under one umbrella and yet operate independently,” he explained.

    Elliot said as farmers become members of the LCCI Agric and Agro Allied Group and the cooperative society, they automatically will be entitled to loans.

    Elliott said the cooperative society will also be used to confront the government and ensure that loans for farmers get to the real farmers.

    He said this way, farmers would be sure that whatever assistance coming from the government would be spread to them as members, unlike now that loans for farmers would be given to non farmers.

    Elliott noted that the cooperative society is open to big and small farm holders nationwide.

    He said there would be opportunities for farmers with similar produce to come together and get a tractor to plough their lands, which would be cost effective.

    According to him, ordinarily small farm holders will not be able to hire a tractor because of the cost, but when they come together, it would be cheaper.

    In a related event, the LCCI has empowered 70 mentees at its yearly mentoring programme for young entrepreneurs.

    The gesture was in recognition of the key roles entrepreneurs play in a nation’s economy.

    LCCI President Dr. Nike Akande said the mentoring complements the Chamber’s mission to promote and protect the interests of its members and the business community through public policy advocacy, creation and facilitation of investment opportunities, provision of business development services and observance of the highest standards of business ethics.

    Mrs Akande, who spoke at the  LCCI entrepreneurship programme, noted that quality human capital can be a major driver of sustainable economic transformation, pointing out that people are important to make things happen in any system.

    She said the initiative was aimed at contributing to the development of the  youth and also to facilitate their self-discovery. She said this was the way to harness the huge human capital potential, which the youthful population offers.

    Mrs Akande added that the mentoring programme started three years ago with 25 mentees, and that by the end of 2015, the chamber had trained and mentored 93 young entrepreneurs most of whom are doing very well in their various spheres of enterprise.

    “Today, we are admitting another set of seventy young Nigerians who will be graduates of this programme in the next six months. I am pleased to inform you that the council of the LCCI only recently approved the admission of the graduates of our mentoring programme into the membership of the chamber on very concessionary terms. The idea is to nurture the next generation of businessmen and women,” she said.

    The Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige, represented by the State Coordinator of the Ministry, Mr. Wale Shado, praised the leadership of the Chamber for the strategic initiative.

    He described the programme as “apt and timely” when viewed against the backdrop of the present administration’s agenda on employment generation and youth empowerment for sustainable development.

    The minister said the Federal Government planned to provide experiences and opportunities for youths and adults to bring forth the best within them to constantly develop and enhance their abilities and take responsibilities to make positive contributions to their communities.

    LCCI Director-General, Mr. Muda Yusuf, reiterated that the  programme has been a huge success. He noted that this batch of mentees would have a similar and even better experience.

    He stressed that the mentoring has been further enriched to empower young entrepreneurs on building capacity, access to market and to create an enabling environment for their businesses to thrive. Yusuf said this year, the chamber would be involving more credible private sector partners to improve experience sharing.

  • Minister advises industries on quality

    The Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Hajia Aishat Abubakar, has advised industries to look inward to achieve the made-in-Nigeria products vision.

    She minister gave the advice during an assessment visit to Lucky Fibres Limited, makers of Nobel rugs and carpets in Ikorodu, Lagos State.

    Inspecting the company’s production facilities, Hajia Abubakar expressed satisfaction that the carpets and rugs are produced in Nigeria and exported to  neighbouring  countries, such as Ghana, Republic of Benin and Ethiopia, among others.

    The minister assured the company of the government’s commitment to ensuring that all textile products are of good quality to meet international standards, urging the company to devise means of working with local manufacturers to achieve the plan in governmet’s vision.

    “You need to exercise more patience because we don’t want to address a part of the problem, but we are putting a holistic approach in place. It is not just this sector, but for all the sectors.

    “You, manufacturers should also be watchdogs for one another because government might not see all the lapses. But when you identify any challenge that threatens your work, approach us and let us see what we can do to help,” Abubakar noted.

    Speaking on the company’s challenges in meeting international standards, the Senior Human Resources Manager for Lucky Fibres Limited, Mrs. Kemi Ajibade, lamented the impact of activities of smugglers who take advantage of Nigeria’s illegal borders to import sub-quality carpets and rugs into the country.

    According to Ajibade, an average Nigerian cannot identify quality products, but will rather buy what is affordable in the market even if it does not serve for a long time. She, therefore, urged the government to address the activities of smugglers.

    “If you visit Alaba Market, you will see different kinds of sub-standard carpets and rugs for sale,” she lamented, noting that the company imports some of its production materials like polypropylene (PP). “This is because local manufacturers could not meet the quality that our machine can work with. The machine is the latest in the industry and only works with high quality fibres,” she added.

    The General Manager of Lucky Fibres, Mr. Jitesh Pamnani, thanked the minister for the inspection, promising that the company will continue to introduce the best machine, technology and manpower to keep the industry flourishing.

  • PZ donates Shea-butter processing facility to Niger State

    PZ donates Shea-butter processing facility to Niger State

    PZ Cussons Foundation on Tuesday formally handed over the PZ NasaraShea-Butter processing facility to a women co-operative group in Tungan Wawa in Kontagora Local Government Area of Niger State.

    The Foundation’s Trustee and former First Lady of Nigeria, Justice FatiLami Abubakar, said the project executed by the Foundation was an intervention to empower women economically through encouragement of rural enterprise.

    She said the new facility is to upgrade their traditional method of production and make them internationally competitive. According to her, it will bring together local processors under one umbrella and organise them into a more formal structure as enterprise.

    The facility consists of raw material store, structures for drying, roasting, blending, finished goods store, borehole and other equipment and machineries.

    Justice Abubakar informed the gathering that PZ Cussons Foundation has executed over 52 projects spread in the six geo-political zones of the country since its establishment in 2007. The focal area of its mandate, she said, is in education, health care, potable water supply and road rehabilitation.

    The PZ NasaraShea-Butter Processing Centre is the first outside the Foundation’s focal area of social services and infrastructure. It is also the third project to be executed by the Foundation in Niger State.

    It would be re-called that PZ Cussons Foundation, as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative, constructed 500 metre Market Road in Minna and donated a Health Care Centre in Gbaiko, Bosso Local Government Area.

    In his speech at the occasion, Niger State Governor Alhaji (Dr) Abubakar Sani Bello commended the Board of Trustee of the Foundation for sitting the project in the State. He said it will support government’s effort in diversifying the economy of the State by enhancing productivity in agro allied endeavours at rural levels, help in poverty eradication and employment.

    He promised to encourage other corporate bodies to do the same. Niger State has a large land mass suitable for agriculture. The Governor has unfolded plans to distribute new improved shea seedlings to encourage more cultivation.