The Chief Marketing Officer of FarmKonnect Agribusiness in Nigeria, Mr. Azeez Oluwole Saheed has identified commercial agriculture as a major sector where countries in Africa can record major landmarks.
Mr. Oluwole further clarified that the future of agriculture in Nigeria remains in the hand of private sector, while government can only create enabling environment to make it flourish.
He made the disclosure during the company’s End of the Year Review and Dinner With CEOs, held at Mauve 21, Ring Road, Ibadan, the capital city of Oyo State.
The Chief Marketing Officer of the company reiterated that the objective of bringing owners of companies together is to network, build and strengthening their businesses.
According to Mr. Oluwole, “I know that socialization is a very important thing for the people to network, build, increase and strengthen their businesses, and one of the things that can make that happen is food, which is an agricultural business. We bring agriculture, food and commerce together because every state, every nation will succeed when it takes the commercial aspect of agriculture seriously.”
He stated that the company is into ‘Smart Agriculture’ having understood that the future of Africa is agriculture, depends greatly on information technology, noting that they are positioning the country to maximize the opportunity.
His words, “Smart Agriculture is using technology, human commits mistakes when it comes to agriculture, we need automation, we need things that will take all your instructions, and that is computer; to have accurate information about what is happening on the field, to protect investment and increase its base.”
The CMO, while enumerating the performance of the company in terms of creating employment opportunity, said that the company that started with just ten individuals, is currently having 35 staff capacity working as administrative staff apart from large number of people working on the farms and extension service.
He added that the Igbeja Snail Village with potential staff strength of one thousand and Wave City Project, which its replica is currently running in Imo State will take not less than two thousand people when it is launched in March with with Osun State government.
He pointed out that the company is in operation with support from sister companies and in partnership with many companies in Asia, Europe, America and in Nigeria.
Speaking on the future of agriculture in Nigeria and how border closure has affected the operation of the company, Mr. Oluwole disclosed that agriculture is going to be a revolution that will change the future of the country.
He added that the company is not in any way having problem with border closure.
“I am going to start it- if government is supporting, fantastic, if government is dragging, I am going to start it. I need the people to understand that the future of agriculture is in the hand of the private sector, even government knows that. It is for the government to create enabling environment, and truly this government is trying but they should try more to know more and understand more. The future of agriculture is large especially when we begin to take intellectual youths into the business, it is going to be a great thing for us.
“Border closure is even helping us to sell our own things. The focus is to feed ourselves first. Food security and accessibility is very important. Socio accessibility and economic accessibility are very important when we are talking about food security, feed home first. I am not interested in farming to take abroad now when we satisfy them at home, then we can think of exporting to other countries,” Oluwole concluded.
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