“Our bill for the importation of food and dairy products is very high. We want to cut it as much as possible by developing our local potentials,” the president stated.
Buhari reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to the rapid diversification of the economy, adding, “we developed a mono-product economy and lost opportunities to diversify in the past.
“We have great potentials for agriculture and solid minerals. We are now determined to exploit them to the fullest”, President Buhari said.
According to the president, addressing the past neglect of the two sectors will help to reduce unemployment and make Nigeria a more productive country.
“We will welcome more investment in our agriculture and solid minerals sectors from countries with expertise in the two sectors. We abandoned them for petroleum. Now, we have to go back”, he said.
The president also stated that the federal government would continue to partner other countries in order to further improve maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea.
He said the government was also determined to stop the huge loss of revenue from crude oil theft.
Buhari also hinted that his administration received assurances of international support to curb illegal shipments of Nigeria’s crude oil.
In his remarks, Rasmussen noted that Denmark is a major shipping nation and thanked Buhari for Nigeria’s current efforts towards enhancing security in the Gulf of Guinea.
He assured that the Danes would be very interested in investing in the development of Nigeria’s agricultural sector if the right policies and conditions were put in place.
“We are quite experienced in agriculture. It is an area in which we can cooperate. If you pave the way and remove the obstacles, we will like to come in,” the Danish Prime Minister told Buhari.
http://www.dailytrust.com.ng/news/general/our-food-import-bill-too-high-buhari/140663.html
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