NAQS Moves to End Rejection of Nigeria’s Exports
James Emejo
The Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service ( NAQS) has disclosed that it is currently leading the federal government’s drive to put to an end the rejection of some Nigerian agricultural produce in foreign markets largely due to quality defects.
The Director-General, NAQS, Dr. Vincent Isegbe, who revealed this, said as the agency saddled with the responsibility to promote export of agricultural produce, NAQS was determined to reverse the situation where the country loses huge revenue, servicing narrow export market options.
He added that given the need to empower farmers, off-takers and exporters to comply with the standards of the export market, the agency was implementing a programme of backward integration for better export products. Speaking at a maiden media parley with agricultural correspondents, since his assumption of officers, he said the inability of stakeholders across the value chain to meet the relevant sanitary and phytosanitary requirements applicable in the destination countries constituted the most serious impediment to the country’s participation in foreign trade.
Isegbe said: “This is because many countries prohibit the import of produce with mycotoxin contamination, high pesticide residue, microbial contamination, sloppy packaging and labeling.
“It is our goal to make Nigerian agricultural produce acceptable everywhere in the world. That way, we will earn more foreign exchange from more destination countries.”
According to him, the ongoing intervention code-named ‘Export Improvement Initiative,’ was tailored to ensure that all relevant activities performed from the fields where the prospective export crops are cultivated up to the point of shipment are consistent with the standard conditions and protocols.
He said the NAQS had been interfacing with stakeholders to educate and train them on export quality criteria for agricultural produce as part of the measure to boost agricultural exports.
He noted that the highlights of its enlightenment campaigns are the instruction of stakeholders on global Good Agricultural Practice (GAP) and the formation of selfregulating associations among the different commodity producer constituencies.
“Through this strategy, NAQS is addressing the fundamental inhibitors of agricultural export and widening the scope for participation of everyday Nigerians in the export business,” he said.
He said the efforts of the service had achieved positive results in monetary terms for the country among others.
The DG said: “I am glad to report that NAQS efforts in mainstreaming best practices are yielding great rewards. “Due to increased knowledge and adaptation to guidelines, Nigeria was able to export 1,983 containers of Hibiscus to Mexico, within the first 9 months of 2017. The country earned $35 million US dollars in the selfsame period.