Experts and stakeholders in the agro-allied sector have decried the continued rejection of goods shipped out of Nigeria.
At the 3rd Chinet Aviacargo Conference with the theme, “Unlocking the Logistics Barrier to Improve Agro Products Exports”, stakeholders said there was need to address the infrastructural challenges at the ports as well as comply with the required standards in the international market.
The Director of Operations, Omni Blu, Captain Kenneth Wemambo, said 90% of Nigeria’s exports are raw products without added value or breakdown of the agro products.
He stated that the rejection of Nigeria’s agro-products by the international community was due to traceability issues, compliance with standard, and certification, among others.
Also, the Managing Director of JOHDIC Resources Limited, John Ekeanya, noted that a survey conducted by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) indicated that the Nigerian economy lost an estimated annual revenue $8.1bn (N3.46trn) due to poor infrastructure, poor implementation, and corruption at the ports.
Wemambo observed that the rejection of Nigerian goods abroad was not discrimination but due to failure to comply with the standards required in the international market.
He said, “It is not discrimination, we have not complied. If we have good produce for export, will the EU not buy it? It means we have to clean up our produce back home. There must be product traceability; you must have the information of your product. Where does it come from? Where is it registered? What was the process? You must have the information or nobody will take your products.
“Why are they rejecting our produces? What countries do we ship to? Asia? Europe? Some states in the United States? What we ship out, 90 per cent are in raw stages. This is not sustainable. When they are processed, you have it better. We shouldn’t be exporting raw products; we should break down our agro-product and add some value.”
He stressed the need to equip special-purpose cargo airports all over the country with the appropriate storage facilities and processing, building silos, and warehouses for agro products and manufactured goods.
The convener of Chinet AviaCargo, Ambassador Ikechi Uko said, “We have money in Nigeria. We have resources in Nigeria, but we have not been able to get many things right. What has been missing is the willpower and resolve to bring together these variables into a workable mix.”
He observed that Chinet, in the past two years, has succeeded in bringing together materials to help grow the economy.
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