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Dangote scales up investments in agric sector to create jobs

Determined to contribute to significant reduction in the number of unemployed Nigerians, Dangote Group have announced that it was scaling up its investment in agricultural sector.

Dangote

Determined to contribute to significant reduction in the number of unemployed Nigerians, Dangote Group have announced that it was scaling up its investment in agricultural sector.

According to the group, agriculture is the only visible way of addressing the high unemployment rate in the country.

Dangote further assured that its huge investments in the sector will lead to real growth and development of the country’s economy.

Fielding questions from newsmen on the sideline of the just-concluded second edition of the Agribusiness Summit in Abuja, Group Executive Director, Strategy, Capital Project and Portfolio Development, Dangote, Devakumar Edwin, said the new investments are significant and timely given the current rate of unemployment in the country.

According to him, 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 is increasing its investment in rice, tomato paste, sugar and dairy products.

He said the company is constructing state of the art storage silos, 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 0.5million tons per year.”

He said the company was equally investing in 40,000 hectares to produce sugar, just as he hinted about the ongoing construction of a 3million tons fertilizer plant.

He said part of the company’s plans also included investment in dairy products and oil seeds.

With adequate arable land and availability of water, he expressed optimism that Nigeria has all it takes to grow the agricultural sector.

According to him, the time is rife to put the agricultural sector in the front burner, more so that Nigeria’s ever growing population is projected to hit 440million by the year 2050.

He said it was in realization of the need to feed Nigerians that the government came out with various agricultural enhancement initiatives which included: Anchor Borrower Scheme, Presidential Fertilizer Initiative, Presidential Economic Diversification Initiative, youth Lab and Food Security council among others.

He said most of its agricultural investments, especially in rice, is based on the out grower scheme.

He called on Nigerians to support Dangote Group’s agricultural drive which is in line with government policy and the yearnings of the people.

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