Don seeks exports centres to boost farmers’ income

By Daniel Essiet

A consultant to the World Bank, Prof Abel Ogunwale, has called for the establishment of exports facilitation centres to help stimulate the economy and transform the agricultural sector, while doubling farmers’ income.

Speaking with The Nation, Ogunwale  said  the centres  would  roll out hands-on training programmes to build up local know-how and skills on good agricultural and manufacturing practices and food safety standards.

He noted that Nigeria’s exports had never really lived up to their potential because it is simply not competitive enough.

He said the facilitation centres  would work as a one-stop-place for the exporters in the agricultural sector as well as boost their exports in terms of global standards.

The centres, he continued, would guide the prospective exporters on various relevant aspects of the ‘farm-to-fork chain of agro-exports. Working with public and private sector partners, he maintained, the centres  would  help farmers, processors and traders to export safe food and agricultural products to markets worldwide.

He noted that there  was  a huge opportunity for exports of value-added products but the economy needed  common infrastructure for processing, standardisation, storage, logistics.

He recommended the establishment of centres to facilitate value addition of agri-commodities for increasing exports.

According to him, concerted efforts by the Federal and state governments, and other stakeholders in the agri-export value chains are needed to address a whole range of issues pertaining to promotion of agri-exports, which could  propel Nigeria into the top bracket of agricultural exporters, and in the process facilitate doubling of farmers’ income within a reasonable time-frame.

Meanwhile, the International Cocoa Organisation Market Report  for last month revealed that the prices of cocoa powder increased  during the month compared to their values recorded one year earlier. They rallied on both markets, up by 55 per cent from $2,738 to $4,251 per tonne in the United States. Over the same period in Europe, powder prices increased by 44 per cent  from $2,344 to $3,381 per tonne.

Moving on to the U.S. market, cocoa beans from Ghana recorded a differential of $506 per tonne in last month against $614 per tonne last October. Over the same period, the premium applied to Ivorien cocoa beans plummeted by 22 per cent  from $481 to  $374 per tonne.