Nigeria rated low in export of agricultural exports

By Dapo Olawuni

The Director General of the Nigerian Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS) Dr Vincent Isegbe has rated Nigeria low in terms of exportation of agricultural products, compared to it’s immense export potentials.

Isegbe stated this yesterday at a stakeholders engagement tagged “Increasing the access of Nigeria Agricultural Products to the Global Export Market” held at the Golden Tulip Hotel in Festac town, Lagos.

According to the Quarantine DG, many Nigerian exporters are not compliant with the laid down procedures for exportation. He said that many of them try to cut corners, especially in sanitary and phytosanitary standards of the global export market which is regulated in Nigeria by NAQS.

He said “Nigeria is punching far below its weight And this is because we are able to show consistent adherence to export grade standards only in a few commodities that can be counted on the fingers of one hand”

“There is a wide array of agricultural products in demand overseas which we produce in considerable quantity but cannot export because we fall short in the conditions established by the destination countries”

“The condition precedent that inhibits and |limits us are the sanitary and phytosanitary standards of the global export market”

“To put it more precisely, our failure to meet the condition precedent is What limits and inhibits us”

“I am personally elated by the new agenda unveiled by the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Godwin Emefiele. Agricultural export is the centrepiece of that agenda.

“This signifies that the entire economy will be steered to pivot on agricultural export from now on. Thus, the agricultural export constituency must
rise up and seize this very bright moment of promise”

“It is my hope that. in this forum, we Will take a united step to widen the access of Nigerian agricultural products to many trade frontiers. It is on shoulders to translate Nigeria’s comparative advantage in over 20 agricultural products into real dominance in the export market”