COTTON FARMING: “THE ALTERNATIVE TO OIL IN NIGERIA”…. SALMANU
The Federal Government has been called upon to checkmate the nefarious activities of smugglers of textile materials in Nigeria that has resulted to the dearth of the textile industries in the country.
This was the advice of the National President of the Cotton Ginners Association of Nigeria, Alhaji Salmanu Abdullahi in a statement made on Friday in Kaduna while addressing journalists on the potentialities of Cotton Farming as an alternative to Oil.
According to Salmanu, the activities of smugglers who bring in textile materials from China and other countries have impacted negatively on the sector and therefore, urged the Federal Government to take the necessary steps that will curb their activities and bring about a boost to the seed cotton production in the country.
“Smuggling is indeed responsible for the dearth of the textile industry here in Nigeria over the years and this has been explained over and again as the cause of the dearth of the textile sector”.
He disclosed that government is fully aware and the actions that are being taken by the government is not very effective to stop the activities of smugglers because the smugglers are known to them.
“The Central Bank of Nigeria promised to block their accounts. It attempted to carry out its threat but the Nigerian factor did not allow that policy to continue. However, we are not relenting at our level, and with the textile sector, to persuade government to realize and affect strong policies to put to an end, activities of smuggling”, he stated.
Salmanu Abdullahi acknowledged that Cotton Farmers have recently being included in the Government’s “Anchor Borrowers Programme of the Central Bank of Nigeria just like their counterparts in rice farming that witnessed an upsurge in its production in the country.
The disclosed that the only difference is that rice farmers are only delineated in few areas where water is present and dedicated to the farmers that know how to grow rice.
“Only 26 states in Nigeria can be able to produce cotton but I will have to accuse state governments here, for not being serious and getting involved in the production of cotton within their domain and their states. They have left everything for the private sector and the Central Bank and, that is not the best. They should show interest because, each state has a Ministry of Agriculture; what are they doing”, he asked?
“They should, like before, try to show interest and engage farmers, enlighten farmers on the potentials for the farmers to grow because they will make more additional money at the end of the day”, Salmanu advised.
He opined that cotton farming, if further and harnessed by government, has the potentials of becoming the alternative to oil in Nigeria.
“It has been so for a long while. Cotton, if explored, will be the alternative to oil. Therefore, that is definitive. Cotton is a product that is needed all over the world. Therefore, the window is there for us to export and earn foreign exchange”, he stressed.
“Once the projection goes right, it will be too fantastic as it will generate revenue of two million pounds per annum that will see the textile companies and Ginneries work round the year. With this huge revenue, we can export. That will also assist import substitution instead of using the hard-earned foreign exchange; we will now be able to generate our own foreign exchange for use to import the necessary materials that we require. Therefore, the use of CBN Funds will be limited”, he enthused.
“The CBN intervention is an ongoing programme right now. They are into the programme; the “Anchor Borrowers Scheme” and they are almost funding the production of the cotton to the farmers. It is ongoing and commendable”.
He however conceded that, in every new programme, there are bound to be hitches here and there. We are working together, pointing out to them, the areas for corrections and they are listening. We hope that by the year 2021/2022, we will get there.
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