Okwe Obi, Abuja
The Director-General, Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service, (NAQS), Vincent Isegbe, has said the country will begin the export of foliage sorghum to China following the signing of a protocol on phytosanitary requirements between the two countries.
Isegbe, who stated this at the 2nd Director General’s Summit and Management Retreat in Lagos, noted that the deal will lead to the establishment of 5 sorghum plantations in different zones of the country by the Chinese.
“We have paved the way for the export of Nigerian forage sorghum to China through the signing of a protocol on phytosanitary requirements with the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China,” he said.
“This framework has granted Nigerians access to the largest sorghum market. In addition, the deal will lead to the establishment of five (5) sorghum plantations in different zones of the country by the Chinese.”
According to him, 5 new health clinics have been established across the 6 geopolitical zones to help tackle plant diseases.
“We have established six (6) plant health clinics in the six (6) geopolitical zones of the country. This is the pilot step in our strategy to spread plant health infrastructure to the grassroots. We will gradually multiply the NAQS plant health clinic footprint until there is one to serve each senatorial district in Nigeria.
“We are upscaling our laboratories. The Lagos and Ibadan labs are nearing completion. Work on the Abuja lab is underway: the structure is now at lintel level,” he added.
He also rewarded zonal station coordinators and officers with money for using PowerPoint to deliver their papers and adhering to the military rules of saluting after the recitation of the national anthem.