The
Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC) has developed improved
cotton varieties in a determined effort to address low cotton production in the
country.The council which has been at the forefront of increased local
production of industrial cotton made this known at a two-day training workshop
of the cotton, textile and garment sector with the theme “Entrepreneurship
training on industrial garment production for local and international (AGOA)
markets” it organised in collaboration with El-Jahab Mubarak Nigeria Limited in
Kaduna.
The director-general of RMRDC, Dr Hussaini Ibrahim, said the council, as part
of its mandate entered into strategic partnerships with researchers in research
institutes to address the issue of poor cotton seeds identified as one of the
pressing challenges of farmers in the sector.He said: “The council in
collaboration with the Institute of Agricultural Research (IAR), Zaria, has developed
improved cotton varieties. Among the varieties already developed are
Samcot 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13. Samcot 8 and 9 are particularly suitable
for North East and North West, while Samcot 9 and 10 are most adapted to the
North Central Zone.”
Listing other interventions by the council, the RMRDC boss said the council had
supported cotton farmers by boosting the supply of agricultural raw materials
for industrial use programme with 6 tons of improved cotton seeds and farm
inputs for application on cotton farms in 2015, and in 2016 as well as the
distribution of 4.3 tons of improved cotton seeds to farmers.He further
said the council was in collaboration with both ABU and NARICT in Zaria to
design and fabricate automated weaving loom for weaving Aso-oke design and that
the fabrication works had been completed and test-run.
Ibrahim who was represented on the occasion by the council’s director of
agricultural and agro-allied department (AAD), Dr Abimbola Ogunwusi, said the
council also planned to initiate, maintain and sustain a national programme
that would lead to development of extra-long, staple cotton varieties suitable
for cultivation at the cotton producing zones of the country.He tasked
participants to actively participate in the training exercise embarked on to
promote entrepreneurship spirit among the youth, saying it was designed to
train prospective investors in the area of production of garments for local
markets and for export, adding participants would learn how to exploit the AGOA
market which has been extended for another 11 years.
The Kaduna State governor, Malam Nasir El-Rufai, in his address, highlighted
the state government’s concern about the high level of unemployment in the
country and urged the youth to embrace entrepreneurship skills which has been
identified as key for job creation.Represented by the director of industry in
the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, Alhaji Musa Isah Jibril, the
governor told the youth that the era of concentrating on certificates alone was
over.
In her address, the Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Hajia
Aisha Abubakar, identified the cotton, textile and garment (CTG) industry as a
sector with high potentials for a quick-win in government’s effort at economic
diversification, noting that the Federal Government had approved the “CTG
policy” which serves as a working document to address the challenges and
provide the platform for the development of the industry and fast-track the
revival of the sector.
She said: “The Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment has
identified four areas of focus to guide the implementation of its mandates.
These include ease of doing business, implementation of the Nigeria Industrial
Revolution Plan (NIRP), support for MSMEs and local patronage of goods and
services. The NIRP plan is based on areas we have comparative and competitive
advantage.”On his part, the
managing director of El-Jahab Mubarak Nig. Ltd, Alhaji Ja’afar Abdulkadir,
noted that the garment industry throughout the world is the single largest
manufacturing sector that can provide very high employment with little
investment, pointing out that history has proved that the garment industry has
been a very vital support for economic growth in many developed and developing
countries around the world.He said the tailoring and garment manufacturing
industry in Nigeria was very fragmented, noting that even though there are many
tailors around their output remained poor in quality while their standard of
work was defective with customer service non-existent.
“This translates to a situation where the Industry remains undeveloped and
solely operated by dissatisfied and poorly educated members of the society, who
are skilled but not properly utilized. Therefore, your training here which will
make you become more professionals in the garment industry is a very welcome
development that will take the industry to the next level and hopefully your
generation will make the country very self- reliant,” he added.
In his presentation entitled Strategies for Sustainable Raw Materials Supply
for Textile Industries in Nigeria, RMRDC’s deputy director, planning division,
Dr. Gabriel Awolehin, said there were enormous potentials in the petrochemical
industry that were yet to be fully tapped for textile industry.According to
him, “the way forward is setting up a Textile Council of Nigeria to coordinate
affairs of the sector in Nigeria. Also, the country could become a net exporter
of textile raw materials to other countries if raw material potentials of Nigeria
are fully exploited. This will save the nation a lot of foreign exchange,
increase GDP, generate employment and facilitate rapid diversification of the
economy.”
Source: Leadership Newspapers, Nigeria Tuesday, 24 October 2017