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Obiano to inaugurate $100m Ekcel Farm Project

By BusinessNews Staff on March 11, 2015

As part of activities commemorating his one year in office, Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra State will Wednesday inaugurate a monumental site for the formal take off of the $100 million Ekcel Farm project in the state.

The farm project, which is sited in Omasi, Ayamelum local government area of the state, is a private sector initiative by Ekcel Farms Limited for the development of full scale mechanised agriculture.

Ekcel Farms Limited, a subsidiary of Oilserv Limited would partner recognised global key players in the agri-business industry, and would focus on meeting the millennium investment goals and objectives of the state government through developing a scheme that would facilitate massive agricultural development in the state. This partnership is further expected to take advantage of the economic transformation programmes of the state government in order to fully realise her investment potentials.

A statement yesterday estimated to cost about $100 million the project is to involve the large scale commercial production and processing of cassava and tomato into bi-products for local and export markets.

“The project, which is consistent with the Anambra State vision to become a first choice investment destination and a hub for industrialisation and commercial activities, will expectedly contribute largely to the state’s agricultural productivity, industrialisation and development just as it will boost activities in the key areas of produce processing, manufacturing and exports,” it added.

The state government had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in September 2014 with Ekcel Farms Limited.

Ekcel Farms operations would maximise the utilisation of local agricultural raw produce, and by so doing create more jobs for citizens of immediate communities and put more money in their pockets.

Apart from being a major consumer of their produce, Ekcel would expose the local farmers to the benefits of agricultural research in areas of crops utilisation, land use maximisation and opportunities optimisation.

“The product choice is been determined by the domestic and international demands for these processed agro-allied products and will be focused on target markets where there are currently supply gaps due to inability to meet high demands,” it further stated.

[ThisDay]

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