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Buhari Moves To Stop Fertiliser Importation As Osinbajo Commissions Fertiliser Blending In Edo

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo

In one of the moves by the President Muhammadu Buhari government to stop importation of fertiliser, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, is scheduled to commission tomorrowAugust 29, the  Edo State Fertilizer and Chemical Company Limited (ESFCCL) located in Auchi, Edo State.
The Fertilizer plant was rehabilitated by WACOT Limited in collaboration with the Edo State Government, under the leadership of Governor Godwin Obaseki.
The Presidential Fertilizer Initiative (PFI) which was launched by President Buhari in 2016, is part of the administration’s drive towards achieving food self-sufficiency and economic diversification through agriculture, to which WACOT Limited has been contributing.
It would be recalled that the Vice President recently commissioned the multi-billion naira WACOT Rice Mill in Argungu, Kebbi State.
The objective of the Presidential Fertilizer Initiative is to ‘disrupt’ the importation of blended NPK fertilizer, by directly negotiating discounted contracts for procuring core raw materials, locally blending same and selling NPK fertilizer to farmers at a significantly lower price.
The rejuvenation of the Edo State fertilizer plant is an integral part of Governor Obaseki’s Accelerated Agriculture Initiative designed to support and actualize the job creation and food sustainability vision of the Buhari’s administration, through Public Private Partnership (PPP).
According to the Governor the company will not only enhance the state’s socio-economic status but will also create an avenue for the youths to leverage on the expertise of major players in the Agricultural sector.
The Edo State fertilizer plant, managed by WACOT Limited, will benefit from the bilateral cooperation between the Governments of Nigeria and Morocco, which has already resulted in the revitalization of 11 fertilizer blending plants across the country.
Speaking while inspecting the Edo State fertilizer plant, Governor Obaseki commended WACOT Limited and used the opportunity to reiterate his administration’s commitment towards helping to achieve the Federal Government’s agricultural self-sufficiency drive for the country.
This was even as the Group Managing Director of TGI Group, the parent company of WACOT Limited, Rahul Savara, said that the plant has been optimized for both physical and compound blending and that it is ready for operation.
Speaking on the Group’s involvement in the Agricultural sector, Savara said: “we are firm believers in this administration’s vision of attaining food self-sufficiency. Therefore we will continue to invest in the agricultural sector significantly, with interventions targeted at the various agricultural value chains.”
Also the Managing Director of WACOT Limited, Mr. Ujwal Senapati, said: “we will continue to deliver quality agricultural inputs at affordable prices, and in the near future, we will be producing crop-specific fertilizer for a diverse range of crops locally”.
WACOT Limited is a market leader in agro-processing, manufacturing, and distribution of certified agricultural inputs including seeds, fertilizer, pesticides among others.[myad]