By Mohammed Kandi
The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina said Nigeria is saving N127billion annually through the use of High Quality Cassava Flour in making bread.
Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, according Muhammad Tahir Zakari, a Principal Information Officer in the ministry, stated this at the Training conducted for Master Bakers on the inclusion of 20% High Quality Cassava Flour (HQCF) at the Garden City Bakery Port- Harcourt recently.
The Minister also explained that the use of HQCF will create more jobs for the youth and help farmers to build up their domestic wealth.
He emphasised the need to reduce the level of unemployment and the need to reduce the foreign- exchange used for the importation of wheat into the Country, so as to build up Nigeria’s GDP.
Represented by the ministry’s regional Director, South- South, Mr. Martins Odeh, the minister said the training was meant to empower the participants on the inclusion of 20% High Quality Cassava Flour in making bread.
He urged the participants to make use of the opportunity and learn how to use the recipe as Nigeria is a high producer of cassava and not a high consumer.
Earlier, the representative of the Cassava Value Chain Desk Officer Mrs. Olajumoke Adewulu said, “Federal Ministry of Agriculture is doing its best in improving the life of the Nigerian farmers to make Nigeria self sufficient.”
She also said six high cassava processing plants were approved by the National Assembly that are capable of producing 40metric tons of High Quality Cassava Flour per day in the six geopolitical Zone.
Olajumoke also informed that the cassava bill which is presently with the National Assembly will passed into law so that cassava farmers will have all the inceptives that is required. She said the Federal Government will do its best to sustain the 20% inclusion of High Quality Cassava Flour by clearing 530hecters of land in 40 locations through- out the country.
“The training is for the master bakers in the six states of the south-south, and 20 participants represented each state, totalling 120 participants trained in the Zone. She said the resource persons were drawn from National Roots Crops Research Institute,” she said.
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