Agriculture

What we intend to achieve with ICCF2024 —ICD

The International Cocoa Diplomacy (ICD) has said the 2024 edition of the International Chocolate and Cocoa Forum (ICCF), scheduled for this month in Abuja and Lagos, is designed to create a culture that will add value to cocoa production, at origin, through continued education and awareness, as well as leisure and fun events.

Speaking at the pre-event media briefing, put together by ICCF 2024, in conjunction with NEXIM Bank and Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria Teams, in Lagos, recently, a member of the ICCF 2024 Team, Mr Shola Mohammed, described the forum as representing a call to action on the need to continue the discussion where policy formation will meet investment requirements.

This, he added, is designed to create the cocoa culture that will begin to intentionally add value to cocoa and create wealth at origin, to reduce dominance of the industry by the consuming regions.

He explained that the Abuja session, scheduled for January 9, will bring together policy makers, financial institutions and stakeholders from across the continent, with the aim of exploiting ways of taking advantage of African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), and other emerging cocoa and chocolate markets to optimise the potential.

According to him, Lagos session is, however, meant to leverage the opportunity of the city being the biggest market in the continent to bring together investors, entrepreneurs and equipment providers, for the purpose of looking into new business models that will encourage partnerships and collaboration to accelerate value addition in Nigeria and subsequently the continent.

In his remarks, Managing Director, NEXIM Bank, Abba Bello, stated that the decision to be part of the forthcoming event stemmed from the need to ensure all hands are on deck.

Bello, who was represented by the bank’s General Manager, Head of Strategy, Tayo Omidiji, expressed the belief that the forum will provide stakeholders, including policy makers, researchers, the organised private sector and financial institutions the opportunity to discuss strategies to crowd in investments and address all other issues towards achieving the huge potential in the Nigerian cocoa industry.

Executive Director, Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN), Ibadan, Dr Patrick Adebola, expressed the institute’s delight at partnering with NEXIM Bank and ICD, noting that the platform provides the opportunity for networking, partnerships, collaboration, ideas and cultural exchange, bilateral trade, opportunities, learning and forming new alliances.

READ ALSO FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE