Former Vice President Alhaji Atiku Abubakar yesterday attributed stunted economic and socio-political development in African countries to the continent’s mono-crop economies, and called for immediate modernization and diversification of the economies as a solution.

As chairman of the occasion, Atiku spoke at the opening ceremony of the 6th African Veterinary Association (AVA)/53rd Nigerian Veterinary Medical Association (NVMA) Joint Congress tagged Coal City 2016 in Enugu.

Atiku maintained that African countries required diversification of the economy which he defined as a genuine change in policy and practice that resulted in the promotion of diverse economic activities by citizens and corporations in ways that contribute significantly to economic growth, employment, rising incomes and government revenues through taxation and other sources.

He said he regretted that fifty years after most African countries gained political independence their economies remained mostly mono-crop economies, which meant large dependence on the export of single primary commodities such as minerals or agricultural produce.

“The prices of these commodities are determined internationally by factors over which African countries have little influence, and they often fluctuate rather widely, making the economies very vulnerable to externally induced shocks,” he said.

Declaring open the conference, Enugu State Governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, who was represented by his deputy, Mrs. Cecelia Ezeillo, stated that the team of the conference was timely as it represented the direction the federal government and Enugu state government had already taken to tackle contemporary challenges.