Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan has called for the revitalisation of Northern Nigeria’s socio-economic and cultural heritage, urging northerners to embrace the vision of Ahmadu Bello and the Sardauna of Sokoto, who led the region to prosperity in the 1950s.
Speaking at the Sardauna Memorial Day in Kaduna, she highlighted the importance of education and cultural preservation.
Akpoti-Uduaghan noted that in 1959, Nigeria’s groundnut export to the UK was valued at £27 million, equivalent to $3.6 trillion today, while current groundnut exports are only $3 million.
In a statement by her Chief Press Secretary, Israel Arogbonlo, she said, “In 1959, Nigeria’s groundnut export to the United Kingdom alone stood at £27m, which has an equivalent purchasing power of 3.6 trillion naira today. The residue from the groundnut’s oil extraction was also exported to the UK as livestock feed. Today, Nigeria’s groundnut exports sit at a distant $3m,” Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan highlighted.
She emphasised that the Northern cotton industry, once vital to the UK market, has also diminished, as it had previously generated significant revenue and employment.
“The Northern Nigeria’s cotton industry shaped the Liverpool cloth market in London, UK. between the 50s and 70s while the Kaduna Textile Mill flourished, creating thousands of jobs. Today, the cotton industry in Nigeria is pretty much non-existent, while this industry generates $21 billion annually. That’s the thriving economy Sardauna helped create and left for us to improve upon.”
She stressed the need for a developmental mindset among leaders to revive the economy and strengthen entrepreneurial ecosystems.
“The only reason why the North is jittering about the Tax Reform Bills is because we are ill-prepared. If we were generating 3.6 trillion from one agricultural product, would we be bothered about the reforms? Hence, we must ask our leaders with developmental mindsets to stir up the entrepreneurial ecosystems so our lands and factories can be productive again. Let’s act from a position of economic abundance for our region and country at large,” she added.
Akpoti-Uduaghan urged collaboration among northern leaders and civil society to achieve these goals.
The event was attended by dignitaries, including the Governor of Kaduna, Senator Uba Sani, represented by his Special Assistant on Internal Party Affairs, Abdulazeez Ishak, Chairman of Northern Elders Forum (NEF), Prof. Ango Abdullahi, and Major Hamza Al-Mustapha.
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