By Ruth Tene Natsa
Tuns Farms Nigeria Limited yesterday, signed a N25 billion memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) on the National Egg Production Scheme (NEGPRO) to be financed by the Bank of Industry (BoI).
Asiwaju Musulmi of Yorubaland and the chairman of Tuns Farm Nigeria Limited, Chief Tunde Badmos, said, “The MoU is aimed at creating one million jobs and providing 50 million eggs on a daily basis by the year 2018.”
He said that the programme will spread out to all the 744 local governments of the federation with the aim of providing sufficient eggs for the school feeding programme while meeting the protein demands of the nation.
According to him, “The NEGPRO is an initiative of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture aimed at increasing the output of egg production in the country to 50 million table eggs by 2018. It also aims to create about one million jobs at full capacity, empower as many farmers as possible, increase the contribution of the poultry sector to the gross domestic product and increase the internally generated revenue of the federal government.”
He said that as part of its terms of reference, “Tuns Farm will recommend eligible entrepreneurs to access the N25 billion facility and develop customised and standard feed concentrate for the scheme to ensure uniformity. In addition, the company will recommend standard specification and costing for the scheme, monitor activities of entrepreneurs, and support the BoI through the National Technical Committee in the selection process of commercial banks to disburse and recoup the N25 billion.”
In his response, the minister, Chief Audu Ogbeh, assured of the full support of the ministry towards the success of the scheme, saying, “We will give you every support to grow and teach others. The scheme besides boosting economic activities in rural areas was imperative to the commencement of the school feeding programme aimed to give school children at least three eggs per child a week.”
Ogbeh called on the BoI, and other stakeholders, to give their full support to the scheme. He, however, expressed anxiety at the peculiar temperature challenges of the various zones, particularly the north.
Source: Leadership Newspaper
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