A former president of Association of National Accountants of Nigeria (ANAN), Dr Samuel Nzekwe, has advised the Federal Government to invest more in the Agricultural sector to boost the nation’s economy.
Nzekwe gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, (NAN) in Ota, Ogun, on Friday.
He noted that the Federal Government needed to develop the agricultural sector by providing critical infrastructure like good roads, and adequate security to enhance the economy.
“There is urgent need to address infrastructural gaps so that efforts made by the Federal Government towards diversification of the economy could achieve positive results.
“The provision of critical infrastructure is a pre-requisite to enabling the country to stimulate economic growth and development targeted for food security.
“By now, the country should be talking of backward integration where farmers can cultivate and transform such products to finished goods, rather than exporting raw or unprocessed products, and importing finished products in return,” he said.
Nzekwe explained that taking raw products abroad simply means the country is also exporting labour, which is good for the country’s economy.
He said that farmers should be able to process their farm produce for local consumption, while the remaining would be exported to generate foreign earnings.
Nzekwe, who appealed to the Federal Government to redouble its efforts towards tackling insecurity, said many farmers could no longer access their farms, describing the situation as a major threat to food security in the country. (NAN)