Abiodun Onafuye/ Abeokuta

The Director General of the Poultry Association of Nigeria, PAN, Mr. Onallo Ankpa has said that if not for the singular effort of Nigeria’s former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, the poultry industry in the country would have died.

Ankpa said this Tuesday during his welcome address at the opening ceremony of the 2014 Nigeria Poultry Show taking place in
Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.

He revealed that, “for the intervention of the former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, the sector would have been dead. Obasanjo saved the poultry industry, as he ensured that the importation of poultry items was restricted.”

The Director General also hinted that the body would strive to ensure that the policy on School Feed programme under the Universal Basic Education (UBE) scheme is implemented, noted that the country has enough farmers to produce eggs to feed the primary school population in the country.

Ankpa, while commending both the Osun and Kano State governments for implementing the policy, assured that the policy would soon become a national policy.

He enjoined stakeholders to come forward to protest against using the country as dumping ground for items, which “we can produce and provide more healthy vitamins for the citizens.”

Meanwhile, there are indications that the scarcity of soya beans needed by farmers will soon be over as 60,000 tons of the essential feeds have arrived the country.

The National President of the Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN),Ayoola Oduntan made this revelation during his address at the
event.

He said the arrival of the soya bean would ameliorate the hardships farmers in the poultry industry have been facing for past months,
hinting further that the distribution would commence next week.

Oduntan in his opening address at the ceremony, with the theme: “Poultry Industry’s Impact on Employment Generation”, said the
industry provides about 15million jobs for the people of the country.

He described the future of the poultry business in Nigeria as bright, adding that, “that situation is getting better every year with
Nigeria being presently the largest producer of eggs (with 13b eggs produced) annually in Africa.”

In her reaction, the State Commissioner for Agriculture, Mrs. Ronke Sokefun assured that the State government would continue to provide enabling environment for the farmers to succeed as the sector is key to the industrialization of the State policy.

She also added that abandoned poultry farms in the State would be rehabilitated and while standard quality-control centre is under
construction.