CBN to resuscitate moribund industries in Kano State

As NNFM unveils sorghum plant
Pursuant to Federal Government’s economic diversification policy, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has hinted of plans to investment over ₦382billion to resuscitate moribund industries in Kano.

When fully actualised, the CBN intervention would not only bring back to life the past glory of Kano as a commercial and industrial hub of Northern Nigeria, but also generate mass employment opportunity for the teeming youths in the state.

CBN Governor Dr. Godwin Emefiele, who disclosed this while commissioning the Northern Nigerian Flour Mills newly install Sorghum plant in Kano on
Tuesday,noted that the move was in demonstration of government’s efforts to fast track economic growth.

Emefiele, who was represented by the Deputy Governor, (Corporate Services), CBN, Sulaimon Barau, regretted that Nigeria loses billions of Naira to foreign imported products annually despite the abundant deposit and competitive advantage. Worst still, Emefiele noted that the disturbing trend continued to deplete the country’s foreign reserves and devaluation of the currency.

Militating against the development, Emefiele revealed that CBN outlawed the importation of 41 items to boost local content, and introduced the Anchored Borrowers Programme, to assist farmers.

The CBN boss, who expressed the CBN’s support for the new sorghum plant, expressed confidence that the mill will generate job opportunities, and boost the nation’s economy.

The Chairman, Flour Mill Nigeria, John G. Coumantaros, said the newly launch sorghum plant, which is designed to produce 30,000 metric tonnes daily will create hundreds of direct and indirect jobs.

He revealed that Northern Nigerian Flour Mills (NNFM), a subsidiary of Flour Mills Nigeria, will before the end of 2017, embark on 100 per cent extraction local crops milling including Maize, Sorghum, and Wheat.

“It is imperative to embark on local content process to complement government’s effort to check large dependence on foreign products. This move will further empower farmers, and create direct job opportunities for the teeming youths in Kano.

“Besides that, we assisting farmers through our out grower scheme to produce more. The programme is being carefully executed through agricultural institutions like The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), and International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), to produce quality seeds for the farmers. And Flour Mills Nigeria in recent times supplied over 4,000 tonnes of grains to IDPs in the North East, to assist the people.” John said.

NNFM was incorporated as a private limited company in 1971, as pioneer milling of wheat and associated grains in Nigeria.
The company suspended production in 2015, mainly due to acute shortage of foreign exchange to import wheat. The reopening mainly for sorghum extraction milling would replace large dependence on wheat flour and value chain products.