Determined to contribute to significant reduction in the number of unemployed Nigerians, Dangote group over the weekend announced that it was scaling up its investment in the agricultural sector.
Agriculture, according to the group, is the only most visible way of addressing the high unemployment rate in the country. Dangote further assured that its huge investments in the sector would lead to real growth and development of the country’s economy.
Fieldingquestionsfromnewsmen on the sideline of the just concluded 2nd edition of the Agribusiness Summit in Abuja Group Executive Director, Strategy, Capital Project and Portfolio Development Devakumar VG Edwin said the new investments are significant and timely given the current rate of unemployment in the country.
According to Edwin, agriculture employs 37 percent of the population, adding that this is against the backdrop of 23 percent unemployment rate in the country.
He said going forward his company was upping its investment in rice, tomato paste, and sugar and dairy products.
He said presently the pan-African conglomerate was constructing state of the artstoragesilos, and as well carrying out parboiling, rice milling, polishing, sorting and parking units for a total capacity of one million tons of paddy.
Edwin said there is an ongoing “investment in 15,000 hectares to produce and process tomato paste of 150,000 tons per year. The current import is 0.5 million tons per year.”
He said his conglomerate was equally investing in 40,000 hectares to produce sugar, just as he hinted about the ongoing construction of a 3 million tons fertilizer plant.
He said part of the company’s plan also included investment in dairy products and oilseeds.
With adequate arable land and availability of water, he expressed optimism that Nigeria has all it takes to grow the agricultural sector.
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