by Usman Alabi
Do you believe that Kaduna is gradually becoming a force to be reckoned with given the spate of developmental projects in the state? especially in the area of agriculture. One of such project is the $120 million Vicampro Potato project which is reputed to be the largest of such in Africa.
The project is expected to cover 10,000 hectares of land and create about 30,000 jobs. Do you think Kaduna has the forward and backward linkages to actually make this project a success, or we are about to have one of those white elephant projects with enormous publicity at the initial stage of their introduction?
Can this project be sustained? Can it push the GDP of the state up in such a way that the capital input would be justified?
Vicampro, operators of the plant would buy the potatoes from the farmers for production as 60% of the product is to be exported, it is also believed that the plant has the capacity to process 2,500 tonnes of potato daily. The project is expected to increase the state’s IGR.
Do you think the project can achieve all that is expected of it?, does the state has the political will to see the project through and create the enabling political cum economic environment to sustain the project, especially in the light of the fact that Kaduna is a religion melting point of Nigeria.
Another question is, the project is designed to export 60% of the product, is that a credible bargain?, is the state going beyond crop production to the level of processing which has always been the bane of Nigeria’s agricultural sector. Are we expecting an increase in the processing ratio and a decrease in the export ratio of the product.
Is the Vicampro potato project in Kaduna viable and worth the publicity?
Let us have your opinion on this issue. Leave your comment or contact us on contact@ymonitor.org