Investors To Lift Textile Sector With N50bn
Cotton farmers, under the aegis of the National Cotton Association of Nigeria (NACOTAN), have appealed to government at bother the federal, state and local levels to help boost cotton farming in the country by providing hectares of land that will engender cluster farming of cotton.
Noting that low production of cotton over the years was due to the large involvement of smallholder farmers in its cultivation, the farmers said creating what they described as farm villages for cluster farming of cotton will not only improve yield but also enable cotton farmers use a single solution to tackle myriads of their challenges including farm invasion by herdsmen.
This is just as a cotton processor, Mrs Ololade Adeneye said about N50billion has been earmarked to set up gunnery plants for three Southwest states of Oyo, Ogun and Ekiti.
She said the plan became imperative in view of the recent directive of the federal government to begin processing of the Military and Police uniforms locally among other uniforms.
The stakeholders made the remarks in their separate remarks during the flag off of cotton recovery from beneficiaries of the CBN/NACOTAN 2019/2020 Anchor Borrower Programme for Oyo state, held in Oyo town.
Leading the call for collective land for cotton cultivation, the National Public Relations Officer (NACOTAN), Mr Abdullahi Kasali said the nation continued to fail to live up to its cotton production potential owing to lack of serious policy by government to stablise the sector as well as the scattered nature of smallholder cotton farms in the country.
According to him, state governments of the region need to understand that cluster farming will engender investors to set up ginneries for cotton processing close to cotton farms, which would, in turn, create employment opportunities.
He added that, over the years, Southwest states have failed to produce 500 tons of cotton yearly, in spite of the region having requisite land mass and human resources.
Speaking in the same vein, Chairperson, NACOTAN, Oyo, Musibau Tijani wondered why governments of the Southwest failed to emulate their Northern counterparts who provide vast land for cluster farming of cotton.
On her part, a cotton farmer, Mrs Adefunke Salam urged state governments to make available existing farm settlements, especially those underutilized, to be used for cluster farming of cotton.
But moved by the need to revive the nation’s textile industry, cotton processor, Mrs Ololade Adeneye said her plans to set up the ginnery plants in Oyo, Ogun and Ekiti needs to be complemented by the government with right and sustainable policies.
