…flags off planting of 300,000 more seedlings
Governor Udom Emmanuel, Saturday flagged off the planting of 300,000 special breed of coconut seedlings in Akwa Ibom, announcing September 18 as the annual coconut day in the state.
This follows the government’s target of cultivating two million coconut seedlings in the state to serve as raw materials for the just completed St. AGabriel’s Coconut Oil Factory at Mkpat-Enin.
Performing the flag off, Governor Emmanuel, who led other top government officials by example himself, planted 50 seedlings at the Government Coconut Plantation, Ekeya, Okobo, saying coconut which is of high yielding value in the international market, has the potentials to replace crude oil.
He said the coconut planting exercise was being performed simultaneously across all the local government areas in the state, adding that planting coconuts in schools were also being targeted in the scheme to ensure that the state coconut oil refinery was fully supplied with coconut fruits.
He called on the Federal Government and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to partner the state in coconut investment.