He said that the value of the 370,000 metric tonnes
of fish is over N175 billion, adding that fish business contributed about 4.5
per cent to the nation’s GDP and also provided over two million jobs to
Nigerians, cutting across the various sectors of the economy.
“Following decreasing revenue from the oil and gas,
the focus of our government is to reposition Nigeria’s revenue platforms
through investment in agriculture.
“Fish is one of the vital sectors that are being
considered, as it is the best and cheapest source of animal protein for human
consumption,” Akingbolagun said.
According to him, fish feeds accounted for between
65 and 75 per cent of cost of production.
Akingbolagun said in addition, a five per cent
value added tax was charged on locally produced fish feeds thereby increasing
the cost of production, as farmers had to buy their feeds at very high cost.
He decried government’s tax policies, describing
them as retrogressive in the effort to reposition the revenue base of the
country from oil to agriculture.
“The Federal Government should quickly address the
problem so as to encourage the growth and sustainability of the aquaculture
sector,” Akingbolagun said.
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