AS a way of boosting honey production in Nigeria and the West African sub region, the Benin Owena River Basin Development Authority (BORBDA) has signed a memorandum of Understanding with off-takers of honey and bee products.
At the Conference room of BORBDA on Friday, BORBDA Managing Director Engr. Saliu Osifuemhe Ahmed, the representatives of Koster Keunen West Africa and Old Levi Multibiz Services Ltd agreed to collaborate in the business of providing the necessary platform to buy off all honey and bee products in the state especially by those produced by the graduate trainees on bee keeping under the auspices of BORBDA in its catchments states.
Also a co-signatory in the agreement was Mr innocent Odigie, Managing Director Dino Trust Global Company Ltd, a bee keeping expert who signed on behalf of his company.
Speaking at the ceremony attended by relevant agencies in food safety and entrepreneurial development of the federal and state governments, the managing Director BORBDA Saliu Ahmed said the agreement was a further proof of the agency’s commitment to providing a ready market to the honey and bee products produced by bee farmers trained under the agency’s Youth Empowerment and Entrepreneur Scheme.
The involvement of the off takers with the bee farmers he said would from now onwards boost the confidence and trust of the bee keeping business knowing fully well that whatever they produce would be off taken in the most competitive price.
He therefore urged the stakeholders especially the state governments and traditional rulers to encourage modern bee keeping and honey production given its suitability in our local environment.
In his brief remarks, representative of Koster Keunen West Africa the foreign lead agency in the MOU, Mr Nasser Bembah Bahisa expressed confidence that the agreement would provide the tonic needed to grow the honey and bee products business in Nigeria and indeed the West African sub region.
He urged the bee farmers to take advantage of the market to expand their respective bee colonies for increased yields.
Femi Awoyemi representative of Old Levi Multibiz Services Ltd speaking on behalf of other foreign partners expressed their commitment to the agreement with BORBDA with a view to increasing the production of honey and bee products in Nigeria and indeed the West African Sub region through an effective marketing strategy of the products.
Mr Awoyemi expressed concern that Nigeria is yet to its optimum in the production of honey and other bee products due to some environmental factors such as pre-harvest theft and destruction of honey fields by unauthorized persons, and poor processing of the bye-products which reduces their market value.
On her part, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Water Resources Edo State Akongie Oboh commended the BORBDA for the concept of modern bee keeping in the state and expressed the state governments determination to key into the programme with a view to expanding the current scheme to accommodate more youths in the state in line with the state government efforts at empowering more youths in the state through agribusiness.
Highpoints of the ceremony was the formal signing of the MOU by the managing director of BORBDA, and representatives of Koster Keunen West Africa, Old Levi Multibiz Services Ltd and Dino Trust Company Limited.
