Emmanuel Etim, trade promotion advisor, Nigerian Export Promotion Council Calabar Office, has said that his agency has identified cocoa and rice as strategic export products whose potentials can be harnessed to generate foreign exchange, create jobs, grow the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP), boost global esteem, promote industrialization.
Etim disclosed this in Ikom Local Government Areas of Cross River State during an interactive meeting with cocoa stakeholders and exporters in the cocoa value chain over the weekend.
“As you are aware, the Nigerian Export Promotion Council is the apex agency of the Federal Government to spearhead the diversification of the national economy through the development and promotion of the non-oil export sub sector. The council has initiated the implementation of the one State, one product (OSOP) as a veritable tool for achieving the zero oil national economy in each State of the Federation including Cross River on export promotion”
He said the interaction would explore possible areas of cooperation to boost the development of Cocoa in the State for export. The meeting also focused on achieving massive production and massive marketing, identify cocoa produce for export, identify reputable cocoa value chain, impute and suppliers, seedlings, appropriate chemicals, among others.
The promotion advisor said the meeting also afforded the agency opportunity to know the current level of youths’ involvement to sustained cocoa production in the State.
MIKE ABANG, Calabar
