Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh on
Thursday insisted that the federal government will continue to export
yams despite its rejection by the US government.
Ogbeh claimed that the product has contributed immensely to the
nation’s economy. Chief Ogbeh also revealed that the food market in the
United Kingdom is £30 billion, while Nigeria is just exploiting only £15
million.
The Minister, who disclosed this at the end of the Yam exporters’
stakeholders meeting, also highlighted the need to embrace export of
agricultural produce following the dwindling oil price.
According to him “The Federal government position is that we
are exporting yams and we will continue to export yam because we are the
biggest producers in the world and we should be the biggest exporter.
“While people are talking now, the rest of the world has given
us notice about 10 years from now we won’t be selling much oil, and if
you people want to wait till then to look for what to export, the crisis
they will be worst than what we have now, and when we want to do it, we
look like the enemies of this country we feel sorry for those who are
so ignorant, they don’t understand, but we will continue until we take
over the world market.”
Reacting to the purported rejection of yams in the UK, Ogbeh said there was no rejection of Nigerian yams in the UK, instead, “there was a delay in shipment, there were not enough cold room facilities, that is what we are discussing.
‘’We are talking, there is a manufacturer now who will be
installing conditioner rooms both at the ports and the farms and the
mini centres where these things are produced to keep them fresh and to
have them packaged properly according to demand standards in Europe and
once that is done, the Europeans have no quarrel. The Americans, the
Canadians are looking for yams at least the large population of
Nigerians abroad are looking for this.”
Furthermore, the Minister maintained “we will continue doing
the business, expanding it, we have a team coming from the United
Kingdom shortly to sit down with us and discuss export possibilities, I
was there 11 days ago and they said that food market is £30 billion and
Nigeria is taking just £15 million and they were wondering what we were
doing, there is no reason what we can’t take 10 percent and if they need
things from us and we can produce those things to their standard, what
are we waiting for?”
“The team from U.K will come to Nigeria, spend about a week or
more, then they will sit down with Nigerian exporters, they (exporters)
will hear from the U.K authorities on how they want these things brought
to their country, then whoever fails to meet the standard shouldn’t
blame anybody, but also we don’t want Nigeria being embarrassed out
there by people who are in a hurry to send things without meeting
standards.”