Managing director of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Dr Sam Ogbuku, on Thursday in Port Harcourt, reviewed the economic situation in the region and drew a conclusion that the time for a revolution in agro business is now.
Making reference to the renewed hope mantra of President Bola Tinubu, vis-a-vis the need to shift attention from an oil economy to an agro based as well as a blue economy, Ogbuku said with the president’s inspiration, all states in the region needed to brainstorm on how to give expression to the president’s vision of giving an extraordinary attention to agriculture.
He spoke at the Niger Delta stakeholders agenda setting meeting to unlock the agricultural potential of the region. The meeting attracted commissioners from the nine Niger Delta states who also enumerated their activities and plans for agro related ventures in their states.
He said: “This retreat is aimed at rubbing minds as a people to ensure that there is food security in the Niger Delta so that we can build an agricultural hub that can feed this nation. We have the potential and comparative advantage in terms of aquaculture. This is the time to make agriculture a cardinal focus of the Renewed Hope Agenda. We must leave a lasting legacy for generations.”
Ogbuku noted that before the advent of crude oil exploration, the people of the Niger Delta were predominantly farmers, stressing that a return to agriculture offers a more sustainable and inclusive economic future.
He added: “It is only through agriculture that we can create employment. With agriculture, we can guarantee food export. The NDDC and other partners should come together and see how we can invest in agriculture. We have to take advantage of our blue economy.
“Let us grow back our staples that have disappeared, such as bananas and cocoyam. Let us, in this retreat, develop a workable framework. For us in the NDDC, we are committed to making history.”
The managing director lamented that Nigeria was still dependent on oil, when God had equally blessed the region with a fertile soil, where all kinds of crops could be grown for local and international consumption.
Ogbuku said the NDDC initiated the stakeholders’ meeting so that a work plan can be developed as template for discussions during a summit on agriculture which the commission plans to hold in the near future.
The commission’s executive director, projects, Dr Victor Antai, in his opening remarks, said the meeting was a call to action, because agriculture remained the surest path to inclusive growth, job creation and food security in the Niger Delta.
