UK Government Partners Dantata Group to Boost Agribusiness in Nigeria
The British government has concluded arrangements to collaborate with Dantata Foods and Allied Products Limited to promote agribusiness development in Nigeria.
This was disclosed by the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Catriona Laing, during a visit to Dantata Foods in Kano, where she led a delegation of United Kingdom officials.
In a statement signed on Wednesday by Sanusi Bature, spokesperson of the Dantata Group, Laing explained that the visit was aimed at strengthening the UK government’s relationship with both public and private sector investors in Kano State. According to the statement, the visit followed discussions held at the UK–Africa Business and Investment Summit concluded in January 2020 in London, England.
Laing noted that the UK government’s interest in Nigeria’s agribusiness sector is driven by the need to promote sustainable land use. She added that Nigeria is endowed with vast and fertile land resources capable of supporting global food production, processing, and packaging.
“We will provide the necessary enabling environment and facilitate investment opportunities in agribusiness to promote the bio-economy, address climate change challenges, and improve food security,” the High Commissioner said.
She also encouraged Nigerian industrialists to focus on the United Kingdom market for processed Nigerian food products.
Responding, Tajuddeen Aminu Dantata, Chairman of the Dantata Conglomerate, said the group’s investment in the food value chain was motivated by the need to address food insecurity, extreme poverty, and the effects of climate change.
Dantata reaffirmed the company’s commitment to increasing investments in the food and agro-allied sub-sectors of the economy to support global food sufficiency.
“Our renewed commitment is to create jobs and ensure food sufficiency in Nigeria and beyond. We will soon begin servicing markets in the Middle East and Europe, in addition to other African countries we are already engaged with,” he said.
He further emphasized that Nigeria possesses the capacity to feed a significant percentage of the world’s population if its land resources are strategically and efficiently utilized.
The Dantata Conglomerate, which includes Dantata Foods and Allied Products Limited, Thumos Dantata Agriculture Limited, and D’Afric Global Resources Limited, has agreed to collaborate with the British Department for International Development (DFID) and the British High Commission to Nigeria to jointly promote agribusiness growth in Nigeria.