A high-ranking Nigerian official Tuesday said that his country
is eager to share China's experience both in feeding people and
exporting agricultural produce.
"China is capable of feeding some 1.3 billion people and
exporting a wide range of agricultural produce. It has much
experience to share with Nigeria, which is faced with similar
problems," Bamidele Dada, minister of state for agriculture and
rural development, said in an exclusive interview with Xinhua.
Nigeria, the biggest African country in terms of population, 133
million in total, and rich in such natural resources as arable land
and cocoa, wants to attract more Chinese investors and
agro-technicians to its agricultural sector, Dada said, listing
farming, fishing, aquaculture and agricultural processing as major
possible areas of cooperation.
Dada emphasized the processing of cocoa and cassava, two major
agricultural products of Nigeria, explaining that his country wants
to export more finished products rather than raw materials.
The minister of state also encouraged Chinese companies to
invest in tractor making, production of chemical fertilizers, and
rural infrastructure, such as roads and power.
"Chinese are expert in these areas and can find great
opportunities in Nigeria," he said.
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Although the oil industry is booming, agriculture is still the
backbone of the Nigerian economy, amounting to 41 percent of the
country's gross domestic product and 88 percent of its non-oil
exports.
To attract investors, Dada said, the Nigerian government has put
in place incentives in agriculture, including zero tariff rate on
importation of agricultural chemicals, duty free importation on
spare parts of processing machinery, and tax free dividends for a
period of five years for agricultural production and processing in
Nigeria.
The two countries have made much progress in cooperation in
agriculture since about 500 Chinese experts started to take part in
the Nigerian National Special Program for Food Security, funded by
the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, in
2003.
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The experts, based in 36 Nigerian states, have helped the
benefiting communities overcome shortage of water supply for
drinking and irrigation while teaching local farmers planting,
fishing and beekeeping skills.
The minister of state believed that the Beijing Summit of the
Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, scheduled for November 3-5,
would help boost agricultural cooperation between Nigeria and
China.
(Xinhua News Agency October 18, 2006)