Consider consumption preference for agricultural development – KUST VC

The Vice-Chancellor, Kano State University of Science and Technology, Wudil, Professor Shehu Alhaji Musa has charged governments at all levels to see consumption preference as critical to agricultural development in the country.

Speaking at the 46th Professorial inaugural lecture at Bayero University, Kano, the vice-chancellor stated that despite policy interventions, the agricultural sector was largely underdeveloped, principally because substantial concentration was devoted more on production, rather than on enhancing value addition across value chain segments.

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The professor of agricultural economics and extension said it was worrisome that in spite of the huge deposited natural resource; “Nigeria is still listed by Food and Agriculture Organisation among nations that are technically incapacitated to meet its food demands.”

He stressed that the federal government Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP), which projected Nigeria’s self-sufficiency in tomato paste, rice and wheat by 2020 was yet to materialise because of the large and continuous dependency on importation.

While applauding the border closure policy of the government, the university administrator cautioned on the possible negative implication of the reopening of the Nigeria land borders on local production of products with a competitive advantage.

“In any economy, consumer preferences and demand constitute the bedrock, which influences the production decisions of producers, since consumers’ satisfaction is the major target of producers if they are to stay in business. The much talked about value addition in agriculture is founded on the preferences and demand of consumers”, Professor Shehu noted.

Chairman of the Professorial lecture and Vice-Chancellor Bayero University, Kano, Professor Sagir Adamu explained that the lecture series was designed to enable professors to showcase the output and relevance of their research findings.