OIL PALM TRACEABILITY: Kogi Inter-ministerial Committee meets, deliberate on key issues
The Kogi State inter-ministerial committee on oil palm traceability on Thursday held their meeting in Lokoja.
Speaking at the meeting, the state Commissioner for Agriculture, Timothy Ojomah urged the members to come up with a desirable method to implement a regular framework that will enhanced the productivity of oil palm production in the state.
The participants at the meeting deliberated on key issues including how to boost domestic production, enhance supply chain transparency, and promote sustainable practices in the palm oil sector.
The committee’s deliberation focused also on challenges like adulteration, poor processing, and lack of value addition, while also encouraging responsible and transparent palm oil sourcing.
They also discussed on how to implement the traceability frameworks, inter -agency policy collaboration and regulatory alignment, enhance data transparency and accountability, foster stakeholders engagement, boost local production and reduce imports, and monitor environmental impacts amongst other deliberations.
The committee members include representatives from Ministry of Agriculture, Trade, Environment, Legal Services, smallholder farmer groups, NGOs, media and private sector partners involved in the NISCOPS programme.
The initiative is part of the National Initiative for Sustainable and Climate- Smart Oil Palm Smallholders (NISCOPS), being championed by a Non profit organization, Solidaridad.
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