The government of India has indicated interest in Nigeria’s agriculture, stating that there is a market for $100 million worth of pigeon pea import from Nigeria.
The National Coordinating Director, Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS), Dr. Vincent Isegbe said in Abuja that the Federal Government got the offer from India after conducting its Pest Crop Survey (PCS) for some agriculture commodity in conjunction with the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA).
The NAQS coordinator disclosed that essence of the crop survey was to determine the kind of pest that affects a particular local agricultural commodity and proffer a solution to boost agriculture.
“We do what we call PCS. We have done for pineapple, sugar, rice, cashew, palm oil and of recent we did for the pigeon pea.
We wanted to know the pest peculiar to some commodities, what extent and in what location nationwide so we keep data on them,” Isegbe said.
Describing the offer as a new opportunity to boost foreign exchange for the nation and create jobs, he added that the NAQS was already working with the pigeon pea value chain to meet demands of the Indian government.
According to him, as member of the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC), the NAQS was responsible to stop the spread and prevention of pests including diseases and contaminants into and outside the country.
