The Director General of National Food, Drug Administration Control (NAFDAC), Dr. Paul Orhii, has called on public servants in the country to take advantage of the provision in the Nigerian constitution, which gives public servants the right to engage in farming while still in service.
Speaking at a training programme for NAFDAC staff on the rudiments of farming in all ramifications to improve their earning power and in preparation for retirement in Lagos, he said the knowledge and skill they would acquire from the training would unmask the fear inherent in life after retirement and even ginger them to opt for early retirement.
According to him, since Nigerian constitution has made it possible for public servants to engage in agriculture while still in active service, they should utilise the opportunity not only as a way of making additional income but to prepare for life.
The NAFDAC boss said a lot of public servants are afraid of retirement because there are no plans of life after retirement. He said Nigeria spends N300 billion annually on rice importation, N270 billion on sugar and N150 billion on wheat, while it has the capacity to produce all that.
According to him, if public servants start to go into agriculture by forming cooperatives, Nigeria, would be the best for it as it would ensure food security, employment and growth. Contributing, the organiser of the training, Project Fix Nigeria Consulting Limited, said its objective was to make Nigeria the food basket of the world.
According to its President, Olusegun Kowontan, the reason Nigerian farmers are not doing well is because they are operating alone. However, he said with collaborative effort, Nigeria would become the food basket of the world.
His words: “Let me draw our attention to this by saying when patterns are broken, a new world of wealth emerges by innovation. The world is now inside Africa and Africa is now inside Nigeria. The making of Nigeria as the world’s largest food producer and exporter on the six continents, with all hands on deck, Nigeria will become the foundation of the new world of food security.
Source : SunOnline