Precious Okoye, the current Miss Africa Queen, on Monday pledged to use her platform to advocate for the development of agricultural industrialisation and economic development in the African region.
Okoye said this at a world press briefing and her unveiling as the sixth Miss Africa Queen, organised by the Miss Africa Organisation in Abuja.
She said the need for awareness and implementation of agro-industrialisation across Africa cannot be over-emphasised at a time when the economy had been fluctuating.
According to her, establishing public-private joint initiatives for growth and sustainability of economies, would increase the countries’ Gross Domestic Product and tackle the ongoing problem of unemployment.
Okoye said: “Africa has a large capacity for producing varieties of agricultural products that are highly sought after across the world and with the right natural climate to grow crops effectively.
“Each country has the capacity to be self-sufficient yielding maximum harvest that can feed the African continent and position themselves as a hub for exporting organic produce worldwide.
“With the awareness of climate change globally, the need to re-invent and re-structure the agricultural sector for Africa should be the primary agenda for each country on the continent.
“By identifying sustainable crops for consistent export, each country can establish capacity building training for industrialisation of agric products from farming to exportation, which will serve both the in-country and international consumers.”
She noted that the 6th edition of the Miss Africa Pageant was created to change the narrative to agro-industrialisation for Africa and for Africans.
Okoye promised to partner with other African queens to identify and showcase agricultural products that were unique to their countries.
