NAN-AE-13
Agriculture
By Chidinma Agu
Lagos, Nov. 11, 2016 (NAN) An environmentalist, Prof. David Okali, on Friday urged the federal and state governments to provide a conducive environment for private sector investment in agriculture.
Okali told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that there were many aspects of agriculture in which the private sector could invest to make the country resilient in agriculture.
“The only thing needed for this to happen is a conducive investment environment.
“Once this is provided, individuals and private organisations can go into planting of seeds, processing of harvested produce, fishery, poultry and even husbandry, among others.
“Others could decide to turn agro-waste into useful products like generating electricity from rice husks,’’ Okali, also the Chairman of an NGO, Nigerian Environmental Study/Action Team (NEST), said.
The expert said that mountains of rice husks were wasting away in some states such as Ebonyi, adding that these which could easily be used to generate electricity and provide power for the immediate community.
He said that agro-waste which could have been turned into wealth were also lying unutilised in many states.
The NEST chairman said that there were other bio-mass which the country could explore by providing a conducive environment for the private sector to operate.
According to him, the dwindling oil revenue calls for urgent diversification into agriculture for a sustainable economy.
Okali said that all parts of Nigeria were blessed with rich and fertile land.
He urged that the governments should leave no stone unturned to ensure that success of innovations in agriculture.
Okali noted that Nigeria had enough experts and other human resources in all aspects of agriculture to ensure sustained agricultural development.
“With a properly guided and sustained agriculture, Nigeria can feed its population and have surplus to export to earn foreign exchange,’’ he said.
(NAN)
ACA/COF/IGO
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(Edited by Oluyinka Fadare/ Ijeoma Popoola)