The Comptroller General of Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS), Dr. Vincent Isegbe, has said the country is expected to earn about $3 billion annually from hibiscus exports to Mexico.
Both NAQS and its Mexican counterpart body, SENASICA, signed a phytosanitary protocol in November to stabilize and grow the export of Nigerian hibiscus flowers (zobo) to Mexico.
Speaking at the 4th CG’s Summit and Management Retreat in Abuja, Isegbe noted that the framework was designed to future-proof bilateral trade in hibiscus “between Nigeria and the largest importer of Nigerian hibiscus against avoidable disruptions.”
He described hibiscus as a metaphor for the countless high-value exportable agro-commodities that Nigeria underutilizes and takes for granted.
Isegbe pointed out that agro-export intensification will boost the country’s overall agricultural productivity, generate sustainable wealth, and improve household incomes among the large swath of the 70 percent population that is engaged in agriculture and agro-allied industries.
He also said the service is currently working to democratize the involvement of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in agro-export activities under its Export Improvement Initiative and Export Certification Value Chains.
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