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Centre seeks for Nigeria/Ethiopia partnership on tea, coffee production

Published

2 years ago

December 1, 2022

The Centre for Coffee and Tea Initiative (CCTI) in Africa has called on Nigerian government to strengthen bilateral relationship with the Ethiopian government on tea and coffee production for additional foreign exchange.

The Founder of the centre, Mr. Innocent Mbonu was speaking at the International Coffee, Tea Day in Abuja on Wednesday.

Mbonu said that Nigeria produced tea and coffee and send to Cameroon which they claim ownership of.

“We have gone to the National Assembly with a bill and very soon we are going to have the National Coffee and Tea Council that will take care of activities pertaining to tea and coffee in Nigeria.

“About 23 states can produce coffee in Nigeria without stress, the highland tea, the lowland tea as well as coffee, so we want to see how we can sensitise all activities so that Nigeria will come back in producing coffee and tea in Nigeria.

“Tea and coffee is next to oil like Ethopia is using it as their foreign exchange earner. In Nigeria, we will know how to do things, so we’ll look at the activities of how we can do and get it done well.

“The land is there, they are fertile both in the north, south, east and west, everywhere is fertile for the growth of coffee and tea. So why don’t we do it by ourselves.

“Most of the coffee and tea produced in Mambila plateau in Taraba state is being sent to Cameroon and the Cameroonians are using the French people to produce it as made in French communities, so we can exploit the atmosphere and begin to get it right,” he said.

Also, the Ethiopian Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Yonas Sanbe, said that both countries could leverage on their population to strengthen bilateral relationships for the production of tea and coffee.

Sanbe said that the economy of both countries was dominant with cultures particularly the coffee production, hence Nigeria must harness this area to generate additional money for its economy.

“I think Nigeria and Ethiopia also are founding members of Africa Union (AU), so our relations grow stronger particularly in multiple distribution in Nigeria.

“This connects Nigerians to the rest of world and the Africans. So we signed the agreement regarding the bilateral issues and business issues.

“So we are working to strengthen the center. In Ethiopia, about 50 per cent of the coffee produced in the country is consumed locally for its high market- domestic markets

“We are trying to diversify our economy from agriculture to promote the foreign direct exchange which Nigeria can also take a cue from,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Director General, Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), Doko Ibrahim, said that the council’s efforts in raw materials utilisation had led to the popularization of various products.

Ibrahim said this led to the production of Moringa tea, medically proven to be essential for some classes of dietetic patients.

” Under the RMRDC boosting programme, the council has supplied tea seedlings to tea farmers in the Mambila plateau and further supported with tea processing equipment

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Dikko And The New Vision Accountability and Development in Sports

Published

1 week ago

December 16, 2024

The Gleamer

Felly Mammah N.

Since the Chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Alhaji Shehu Dikko assumed office on the 30th of October, 2024, he has systematically and deliberately been putting in place structures that would result to proper development of sports in Nigeria. Shortly after he was first appointed by President Bola Tinubu as a leading strength of sports, the Director General (DG), Hon. Bukola Olapade was appointed to compliment his efforts.

Many sports analysts believe that the duo of Dikko and Olapade who have been very visible in sports administration will be one of the best combination to take the sports sector to the next level. The DG no doubt, is the head of administration in the Commission, but it should be noted that the financial enablement to manage the affairs of staff and the political might that shops for the finance needed in the running of the sector rest on the Chairman who has the task of liaising with the President directly.

It is also, worthy to note that there is a huge difference between the administration of in the Civil Service as it is controlled by a Permanent Secretary and Directors while the administration of a Commission involves Board Members and experts whose voices and actions are also, game-changing; more so as Commissioners are likely going to take charge of the different zones to proffer solutions for a way forward. The defunct Ministry of Youths and Sports Development which later in 2023 metamorphosed into the Ministry of Sports Development on the assumption of President Bola Tinubu, produced a minister who was not versed in sports administration and as a result, faced mass criticism especially from men of the media.

These men of the pen profession are the torchlight of global sporting activity; they equally keep the history of both sports participation globally as well as the records of athletes’ performances. Their torchlight on past Minister’s and particularly the recent past, have revealed that most of the people who presided over sports administration do not really have any knowledge of the sector before their appointment.

The exit of the immediate past Minister, Sen. John Owan Enoh, refreshingly paved the way for change and this has brought in sports personnels that are expected to place sporting activities in the digital world. Suffice it to also, say that the new management of Sports Commission in parts of her changes is expected to sanitize athletes’ attitude and character for better reflection of children who have seen and communicated with their peers in the Western world.

However, the clarion call for President Tinubu to remove politics in sports may have changed the leadership of sports going by what many sports fans saw in the last outing of both Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris 2024, where a country like Nigeria did not measure up to her potentials.

Despite the poor performance of atheletes during the World Olympics Games, the past immediate past Minister deserves to be commended that during his tenure, the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) Games was reawakened as the participation of our Super Eagles brought back hope and jubilation to sports fans including the President and higher authorities. Yes whopping sum of N12 Billion was released two weeks to the Olympics Games and at a time the country was not financially stable. Despite the presidential financial support, the medals presented to the country were crisis and ignorant of both the atheletes, Nigeria Olympic Committee and the Atheletic Federaton to do the needful.

Therefore, it is heart-warming that the President harkened to the appeal of his fellow sports lovers to handpick a known figure in the sports arena to share his wealth of experience that gave him both a name in Sports and positions as the former Chairman of the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL), Chairman League Management Company (LMC), FIFA match Commissioner of significance, 2nd Vice President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and presently, CAF Committee Member, in addition to his new portfolio as Chairman NSC.

My reference point here is that Alh. Dikko has been given the authority to effect positive change in sports sector, co-ordinate over 40 Sports Federations in the sector, welcome ideas of both sports stakeholders, individuals and veterans of sports that will enable him x-ray the reasons for poor performances in the sector and to chat a way forward for success story. There can never be a new testament without an old testament, thus the reason Alh. Dikko’s doors have remained opened to receive courtesy calls that included the visits by past administrators and foreigners who want to facilitate with whom the cap fits.

Still, in the mood of celebration to formally welcome Alh. Dikko to office was the peculiar power of sports which gathered momentum and the crowd for happy moments as seen in the recent novelty match organized by his friends, associates and sports veterans at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, Abuja recently. That gathering clearly announced not just a man who has made a name for himself at a height in global political decision making in sports circle, but a man who has also, given voice to our country’s leagues and international activities.

Sports is a significant sector that comprises emotion, tension, happiness, sadness even death and hope irrespective of the fact that it has the potential to feed many mouths. The sector cannot be compared to other Ministries with delayed bureaucracies and frustration of abilities. While in the civil service the head will rather submerge a growing talent for fear of power thrown, a coach who discovers a talent takes the credit for showcasing a star athelete discovered. Sports has been proven to generate revenue as well as attract public partnership which are all aimed at enhancing podium performance by the athletes.

Shehu Dikko’s business vision and wide participation in football contributed in making him the right candidate to place the sector in its expected level, increase the GDP of the country’s economy and equally be accountable with administrative roadmap for success.

The novelty match organised for him by his sports fans and League managers had the likes of Samson Siasia, Victor Ikpeba, Mutiu Adepoju, Dominic Iorfa, Ahmed Musa in attendance to share their joy with him as they displayed their talent with their foot.
Others that graced the occasion were Super Sports General Manager, Felix Nwogu, former and present Chairmen of House Committee on Sports, NFF President, NOC members and persons from across the globe. That singular act indicated a clear fact that Dikko can actually gather momentum with persons that can support his ideology to deliver as charged by the presidency.

However, the Chairman’s meekness to open his doors to all does not mean weakness neither does it mean that he has not commenced work officially. His work is more of brain tasking because ideas actually rule the world. I will boldly say that he has resumed work with like minds that will not only be on the same page with him but will as well be on success Guinness Book with him.

Felly Mammah N.
Press Officer (NSC).

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