The Nigeria Agribusiness and Agro-Industry Development Initiative (NAADI), an enterprise of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, has commenced operation in Delta state.
The State Coordinator of the Initiative, Elder Abu Joshua Jonah, who formally announced the coming of the organisation to the state while interacting with newsmen in Asaba, said it was collaborating with the Federation of Agricultural Commodity Association of Nigeria (FACAN).
Elder Abu said the concept of NAADI derived from the fact that agro-industry helped to unlock the latent in agricultural commodities for the satisfaction of consumers, while agribusiness helped to create spatial or temporal utility at different places and time through marketing of the products for eventual consumption.
He stated that the objectives of the Initiative were to diversify the productive base of the Nigerian economy through agro-industrial enterprises, reduce dependence on imports of agro-industry products, promote job creation through domestic and foreign direct investments in agribusiness and agro-Industry, promote export trade and profitability in the enterprise.
Elder Abu, who was with the State Administrative Secretary of the organisation, Ambassador Gloria Umukotete, and the Desk Officer, Dr (Mrs) Fidelia Igemohia, said a 5-day sensitization programme for stakeholders of the agro-industry and agribusiness would soon hold in Asaba, pointing out that over 150 participants would be attending the programme.
In her contribution, the State Administrative Secretary, Ambassador Gloria Umukotete, said everyone in the agro-industry and agribusiness value chain would benefit immensely from the Initiative and called on Deltans to key into it.
She revealed that the programme would be funded by financial and development partners, including Bank of Industry, Bank of Agriculture, Central Bank of Nigeria, UNIDO, African Development Bank, United States Agency for International Development, among others.