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UNIDO Pledges Support For Agric Devt

By on April 4, 2011

United Nation industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) has pledged to assist Nigeria to develop its agricultural sector and to achieve its goal of becoming one of the most industrialised nations by  2020.
The new UNIDO country Representative in Nigeria, Patrick Kormawa, stated this during a consultative meeting on agribusiness and agro industries development initiative (3ADI) in Abuja.

Kormawa said UNIDO is aware of the leading and key role Nigeria played in Africa, particularly in the economic sector, and UNIDO is ready to support the country achieve its industrial goal. “We are aware that the country has set up a very important target for 2020.
Nigeria intends to be among the most industrialised 20 countries and coming at this stage is great challenge for us to support the country to achieve its major target,” the UNIDO envoy stated.

Earlier during a courtesy visit to the Minister of State for Commerce and Industry, Josephine Tapgun, the UNIDO Country Rep said, “we are here to support the Ministry, government of Nigeria to become one of the most industrialised nations in few years to come.”
While noting that no country can develop without paying attention to its industrial sector, Kormawa urged Nigeria to pay more attention to moving its industrialisation process forward.
“Nigeria has no reason to be a poor country, you have the resources, both human and material, UNIDO as the technical agency will provide technical assistance to ensure that the country becomes one of the most industrialised nations” he stated

On the agric business and agro-industries, the UNIDO Country representative noted that there is a huge commitment from the side of the Nigerian government and there is the need to foster a reliable partnership to compliment the efforts of the government in that regard Mrs. Tapgun, in her remarks noted that relationship between UNIDO and Nigeria has come a long way, adding that the  country through the ministry has benefited immensely from UNIDO technical assistance and other investment in Nigeria. She stated that UNIDO has been so passionate about the development of agriculture and industrial sector in Nigeria, stressing that the country is basically an agricultural nation and one cannot talk about development without talking about agric business.
“The tools for industrial development are embedded in agriculture, the issue of raw materials, which is basically a major industrial development instrument, cannot be achieved without developing the agric sector, and if the UNIDO will take up that sector we are solidly behind them”, she said.
The Minister also requested the assistance of UNIDO for the development of fruits and vegetable industries in the country, lamenting that Nigeria wastes a lot of its fruits.

source : Thisday