The minister of information, Labaran Maku, has revealed that cassava bread has been discovered to be the best in the world. Government is promoting cassava bread to provide local content in the delicacy and reduce the country’s huge capital flight in the importation of wheat flour.
Maku stated this yesterday in Abuja at an exhibition of made-in-Nigeria products organised by the Federal Ministry of Information in collaboration with some small and medium enterprises.
The ministry yesterday launched a media campaign to promote indigenous products in furtherance of President Jonathan’s political will to boost the local economy.
Maku said the media campaign was to enlighten Nigerians to understand the linkage between patronising local products, growth of the economy and job creation.
“Federal Ministry of Information is leading a media campaign to make Nigerians aware and to sensitize them and make them understand the implication of always rejecting things that are made in Nigeria in preference to foreign products,” he said.
The minister decried how the elite elevated the consumption and usage of foreign foods and products in the country to a status symbol at the expense of the economy, and attributed it to colonial values.
“Unfortunately, for a long time, since the coming of the Whiteman, Nigerians have been disoriented into thinking that it is only the products made in Europe or Asia that are good.? The colonial policy was to make sure that Nigerians produced raw materials and send to Europe, while Europe would produce finished products for us to consume because there is more money from finished products than raw materials”, he said.
Maku noted that in a global competitive market for products, every country wants to export its products to other countries while cutting down on the importation of finished products in order to create more jobs at home and curb capital flight.
He said it was in line with this that President Goodluck Jonathan directed that any construction contract below N5 billion should be awarded to Nigerian companies and that a fund had been set up to assist women to be involved contract execution.
Maku further stated that the president made it a policy that only Nigerian foods would be served in the Presidential Villa in addition to promoting the consumption of cassava bread, which was discovered to be the best in the world, in order to support the growth of the local economy and create more job opportunities.
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