By patience aliyu
Abuja – Mr Joseph Idoko, President, Stock and Minas Agricultural Advocacy Network Africa (SMAANA), says the three fold agribusiness plan will provide 40,000 new jobs to end youth restiveness in the country.
Idoko said this during a sensitisation outreach organised for Members of Staff of the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) in Abuja, as part of sensitisation campaigns being carried out across the country for government workers.
Idoko while calling on the public, especially government workers and workers in organised private sector, to take advantage of the opportunity presented, said the anxiety associated with unplanned retirement kills faster than sickness.
According to him, crop expansion model or retirement investment model for workers will solved the problem of youth restiveness by creating job opportunities for youths.
“Because ordinarily, one hectare of oil palm plantation can comfortably employ between four to six direct workers and 10 casual workers.
“If we have 10,000 hectares and we employ four persons on each, it means we have created job opportunities for about 40,000 Nigerian youths that are roaming the streets,’’ he said.
Idoko, who spoke on the minimal nature of risks associated with the scheme, said liquidity is about the only risk involved in the business which cannot be avoided considering the long term nature of the business.
“The major risk to this business is liquidity, what do I mean by this liquidity, you are investing in this business you are not getting the returns immediately.
“It is a long term business, one risk is that the liquidity that will not be available in a short term is the major risk.
“Because, every other risk has been taken care of like the risk of death or lose of money, these have been taken care of by Leadway Insurance and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) respectively.’’
Also speaking, Dr Stella Bulus, a staff of the Agric Dept of AMAC, who also represented the Head of Department of Agric, Dr Shuaibu Adamu, said the project was a laudable one with many opportunities linked to it.
“The oil palm is a plant that has so many benefits if it grows well.
“There are so many things that it can be used for, aside from the palm oil from the fresh kernel, and also palm kernel oil from the dried kernel, the leaves, the bark, the burnt kernel can all be put to other industrial uses.
“If all the organisations involved can be made to achieve this, I believe that the scheme will work very well and retirees still in service will benefit from it.’’
Bulus, therefore, called on government workers to key into the project, saying“I believe that retirees and those that are still in service will benefit from it’’.
Similarly, Mr Fasan Olakunle, the Vice Chairman, Nigerian Union of Local Government Employee (NULGE), AMAC branch, said he was satisfied with the presentation made by the organisation.
He, however, expressed fears of uncertainties, which according to him, is common with every new policy in the country.
News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the 3 fold agribusiness model is aimed at enhancing and supporting sustainability of lives and the habitat as a whole
The 3 fold agribusiness investment plan include, alternative agribusiness retirement investment scheme for workers, tree crop expansion, and job creation for the teeming unemployed Nigerian youths.
NAN also reports that some of the collaborators on the project are the Central bank of Nigeria (CBN), Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Nigeria Investment Promotion Council (NIPC) Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) among others.
(NAN)