The Enugu Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture, ECCIMA, has promised to attract critical stakeholders in the Liquefied Natural Gas, LNG, production in Nigeria to reticulate gas to Enugu and promote agriculture in the state.
The Chamber noted that it is working on attracting low priced fuel for Power generation, as a strong enabler for businesses and manufacturers; adding that it is also committed to promotion of commercial agriculture through agro-industrial training and entrepreneurship development.
This development was disclosed by the newly installed 17th President of ECCIMA, Sir Odeiga Jideonwo, who made the pledges during his investiture with other council members in Enugu, during the weekend.
According to Jideonwo, the Chamber hopes, among other things, to achieve in the next two years the engagement with the government on multiple and incessant taxation, while it will work with the government to improve its efficiency in providing relevant permits that business require.
His words: “We’ll give value to members by creating linkage between member manufacturers and international markets to boost export. Of great importance due to the time we are in is the promotion of commercial agriculture via agro-industrial training and entrepreneurship development.
“We intend to discuss deeply with all farmers associations in Enugu state and indeed all stakeholders with a view to encouraging small, medium and large holder farmers to form clusters/co-operatives to boost their capacity in cash crop and livestock farming,”
In his own remarks, Chairman of the investiture dinner and former President of the Senate, Chief Ken Nnamani noted that Nigeria has nose dived into hyper inflation such as Venezuela which he noted was at a point the richest country in Latin America.
“But Venezuela didn’t divest in other areas apart from oil. Now it’s one of the poorest countries. ECCIMA makes a contribution to the economy and ensures that productivity is high. The Jideonwos’ have achieved much for themselves and I expect them to do so in ECCIMA,” Nnamani said.
The National President of the Nigeria Chambers of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture, NACCIMA, Otumba Dele Oye also stated that there were 71 city chambers that makes NACCIMA the biggest business structure.
“We encourage commerce and industry, we engage with 35 structural Institutes. subsidy removal, inflation, insecurity don’t allow for food production and the government has been benefiting from the naira fluctuation. We have written to CBN on what to do and we are ready to support them. We pay high interest rates because banks use it to conduct businesses,” Oye said.