The Minister of Science and Technology, Chief Ogbonnaya Onu has said that the Federal Government would explore botanic sources such as herbs and plants to boost the country’s revenue as well as fund the budget.
He stated this in Owerri at the HERB FEST 2016, organized by the Bio-resources Development Group of Prof. Maurice Iwu.
“Many countries depend on the exportation of their herbs and plant to fund their budgets. Nigerians can explore this area and do something better. This is a multi trillion naira business and Nigeria is shut out from this sector.
“The time has come for the Federal Government to collaborate with the public and the private sector to make proper use of this sector. I am asking Nigerians to start exploring this area for solutions,” he said.
It was the opinion of the minister that the country will improve if Nigerians became more patriotic.
“I ask Nigerians to patronize Made-in-Nigeria goods and services. It will help to create jobs for the young people and end hunger.
“We can’t continue to drink imported tea when we can produce our own tea here which is very good. I expect that this symposium will find many solutions confronting Nigeria,” he stated.
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