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ITA partners NEPC to launch first E-Lab Innova training for agribusinesses in Nigeria
The E-Lab Innova is an educational training program for the agri-food sector in Nigeria.
As part of its commitment to boost trade relationships with Nigeria, the Italian Trade Agency, a governmental agency that supports the business development, partnerships and collaborations between Italian companies and their local counterparts, has launched the first E-Lab Innova in Nigeria. The E-Lab Innova is an educational training program for the agri-food sector in Nigeria which will be implemented in collaboration with the Nigerian Export Promotion Commission (NEPC) alongside other Italian partners, such as MACFRUT, a leading exhibition for the agribusiness industry.
The training is aimed at increasing the technical and managerial skills of Nigerian agri-food companies in order to support their access to EU markets and foster business partnerships with Italian companies. Participants which were selected with the support of NEPC are CEOs of high-potential companies active in the production of foods such as mango, pineapple, shea nuts and groundnuts. The programme is scheduled to hold for the duration of five weeks and will be implemented in three phases: a preliminary assessment to analyze the technical and management training requirements, company potential and profile design; 2-week webinar training classes focused on key internalization topics and a 5-days study tour in Italy, which will include Macfrut exhibition.
Giving his opening remark at the event held to flag off the training, the Italian Trade Agency Director for West Africa, Dr. Alessandro Gerbino said, “Nigeria remains a strategic point for engagement between the agency and other countries across West Africa. The E-Lab Innova holds prospects for Nigerian companies to be imparted on the knowledge and technicalities of their counterparts abroad whilst also paving the way for collaborations between Italian and Nigerian agribusinesses.”
“It is a pleasure to see the collaboration between the Italian Trade Agency (ITA) and the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), to develop the capacity of agribusinesses and aid their integration into the value chain of European Union markets. We remain committed to supporting the government’s plan to create more jobs through the agrofood industry and ensure that these businesses have the right skillset to grow, sustain their operations and contribute to the growth of Nigeria’s economy,” Dr. Gerbino added.
In her keynote address, Uduak Etokowoh, Director, International Export Office, Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NECP), said, “the council constantly seeks out collaborations like this to strengthen trade relations across the world. The European Union (EU) is one of the largest markets for agribusiness, however, challenges such as logistics and inability to meet market needs pose a threat to growth opportunities. In adjusting to the new normal of virtual engagements, we are extremely delighted to partner the ITA to deliver this virtual training in support of wealth creation for the economy and to enhance seamless penetration to the EU markets for Nigerian agribusinesses”.
13 agribusinesses across Nigeria took part in the first training session including United Agro Cooperative Society Limited, Cobrend Trading and more; the programme will involve nearly 40 Nigerian companies in total. Since the launch of Lab Innova in Africa, over 140 companies across Ghana, Angola, Mozambique, Uganda and Ethiopia have successfully gone through the training programme, with study tours and exhibitions held in Italy.
About the Italian Trade Agency in Nigeria
ITA – Italian Trade Agency is the Governmental agency that supports the business development of Italian companies abroad and promotes the attraction of foreign investment in Italy. With a motivated and modern organization and a widespread network of overseas offices, ITA provides information, assistance, consulting, promotion and training to Italian small and medium-sized businesses.
The agency is committed to establishing strong contact with Nigeria with a major focus on industrial technologies that address the growth pattern Nigeria has adopted in several areas, so to add value to local natural resources and raw materials.
Using the most modern multi-channel promotion and communication tools, it acts to assert the excellence of Made in Italy in the world. ITA operates in 70 countries under the Italian Embassy.
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Bayer set to hold the 3rd edition of the Nigeria Maize Conference
This year’s conference which will be virtual is tagged “Much More Maize” and is scheduled for the 22nd of April 2021.
Bayer Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of Bayer AG, Germany has announced its plan to hold the 3rd edition of its annual Nigeria Maize conference. This year’s conference which will be virtual is tagged “Much More Maize” and is scheduled for the 22nd of April 2021.
Speaking ahead of the conference, the Country Sales Manager, Bayer Nigeria Ltd, Mr. Temitope Banjo said that the Nigeria Maize Conference is an initiative to bring together stakeholders in the Maize agricultural value chain, to deliver innovative solutions that would help Nigerian farmers maximize their farm yields and secure their harvests from devastating disease and pests.
According to Banjo, “Nigeria is yet to reach its full potentials in terms of maize productivity, for example where a hectare of farmland in Egypt can yield up to 7 metric tonnes per hectare, a farm of the same size in Nigeria only produces around 1.8 metric tonnes per hectare which is one of the lowest among the top 10 maize producers in Africa.” He went on to say that even though Nigeria is presently the largest producer of Maize in Africa, the country is still not able to meet up with its domestic and industrial needs for the crop.
He stated that the challenges with maize production in Nigeria are mainly due to poor agronomic factors and the use of bad seeds during planting and cultivation, and there is a need to educate our farmers on how they can increase the productivity and profitability of their farms, hence the theme for this year’s conference.
Commenting on how Bayer intended to address the maize production challenges in Nigeria, the Managing Director of Bayer Nigeria Ltd., Mr. Sefihait Kone explained that Bayer has a suite of products which is called the Bayer “Much More Maize” toolkit, specially put together to help farmers protect their crops and boost productivity of their farms from the planting phase through the harvesting stage.
“We will show how these products, if used properly have the potential to increase the profitability of their farms which translates to higher revenue for them. We hope that once all farmers imbibe these proper procedures, it will have a ripple effect on the economy and increase the food sufficiency of the country,” Kone stated.
Some of the guests and keynote speakers expected at the virtual conference include Alhaji Abubakar Bello who is the President of the Maize Association of Nigeria (MAAN), Dr. Olusegun Ojo, the Director of the National Agricultural Seed Council (NASC) as well as experts from Bayer in person of Dr. David Wangila and Dr. Joseph Kibaki.
Visit https://nigerianmaizeconference.com/#register to register for the event.
Bayer is an innovation company with a more than 150-year history. Its scientific successes are intended to help improve people’s lives. It’s a global enterprise with core competencies in the Life Science fields of health care and agriculture.
