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10 rice milling plants ready in 18 months, says FG

Published

5 years ago

July 10, 2018

The Federal Government, on Monday, said it would take 18 months for it to deliver on its 10 integrated large scale rice processing plants.
The government also maintained that it would continue to establish more rice milling plants for rice sufficiency, insisting that rice remains a stable food mostly consumed by Nigerians.
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, stated this when he signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Messrs MV Agro Engineering Nigeria Limited and MV Agro Engineering PVT Limited to set up 10 rice milling plants in ten states estimated at over N10 billion.
Some of the states to benefit from this gesture are Anambra, Bayelsa, Benue, Bauchi and Kebbi States.
Others are Kaduna, Kogi, Niger, Ogun and Zamfara states.
The minister added that it was time for the country to totally stop the importation of almost everything ranging from vegetable oil, cassava, industrial starch, cyrups, adding that the country is endowed with raw materials.
He also called on the youths to meaningfully engage in agriculture rather that loaf around.
“The ministry has adopted a system which is to handwork industrialists into prosperity and that is why government buys machines and resell to investors who will manage and repay over a period,” he added.
Speaking earlier, Minister of State for Agriculture, Sen. Heinekan Lokpobiri, hailed Nigerian rice, stating that it remained one of the best.
Lokpobiri also assured Nigerians that the plants would be ready as scheduled.

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I’m planning to settle down – Rapper Falz reveals

Published

3 days ago

December 7, 2023

NewsDirect

Nigerian rapper Folarin Falana, aka Falz, has revealed he is planning to start a family.

The 33-year-old said he is considering getting married soon, adding that he would be open to having children in three years time.

Falz The Bahdguy disclosed this in a recent interview with actress Chinasa Anukam.

The host asked: “Are you planning to settle down? Yes or no?”

After dilly-dallying, Falz replied, “Yeah.”

Asked how many years he is looking at to have children, the rapper said, “The next three years.”

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35.1m Nigerians living with disabilities – Commission

Published

1 week ago

December 2, 2023

NewsDirect

Mr James Lalu, the Executive Secretary, National Commission for Persons With Disabilities (NCPWD), says 35.1 million Nigerians are currently living with disabilities.

He made this known during a one-day programme for the issuance of permanent certificates to persons with disabilities in the southeast, held in Owerri on Friday.

The NCPWD boss, represented by the commission’s acting Director, Compliance and Enforcement, Mr Ikem Uchegbulam, said that the figure is based on report by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

He explained that the programme was aimed at sensitising persons with disabilities about the benefits of certification, in line with Section 28 of the Discrimination Against Persons With Disabilities Act.

He added that while temporary disability certificates could be issued by medical doctors in the event that a person happens to be unable to make use of a body part for some time, permanent disability certificates are issued by the NCPWD.

According to him, only persons with valid disability certificate can obtain and claim remedies under the Act, thus the need for all Persons With Disabilities (PWDs) to obtain certificate.

Lalu also said that “in addition to acting as means of identification, the Act has made the certificate legal requirement for obtaining remedy from the law court, hence the need for possession of the certificate.

“A recent WHO report estimates that about 35.1 million persons have disabilities in Nigeria, so, the commission is doing its best to ensure that they have access to all their rights as enshrined in the constitution.”

The Imo Commissioner for Women Affairs and Vulnerable Groups, Mrs Nkechi Ugwu, thanked the commission for efforts toward alleviating the plight of PWDs.

Ugwu, who was represented by the ministry’s Director of Administration and Finance, Mrs Ozioma Nwigwe, said the Imo Government would continue to champion the cause of persons living with disabilities in the state.

The event was attended by clusters of the Joint National Association of Persons With Disabilities, including the visually impaired, deaf and the dump.