TheCable

Growth and Employment in States – Wholesale and Retail Sector (GEMS4), an organisation targeting the growth of small and medium enterprise, is set to hold a three-day fair for boosting rice production in Nigeria.

According to the organisers, the fair with theme: ‘Growing business opportunities with Nigerian rice’, will provide a platform for the public to experience firsthand the quality of Nigerian rice.

It will also afford the business community the opportunity to realise the benefits in wholesale and retail distribution of the product.

According to the organisers, the stimulation of market system changes will encourage growth and access; resulting in the creation of 10,000 new jobs and increased incomes for over 500,000 people, especially the poor and women in the rice value chain.

The project will be implemented in Lagos, Kano, Kaduna and Cross River states, though interventions will be extended to other states where impact can be maximized.

The Lagos fair will have in attendance over 13 major Nigerian rice brands and will give further impetus to Nigeria’s ongoing efforts to attain rice sufficiency through building local capacity in rice production.

Funded by DFID/UKaid and the World Bank, the Lagos Rice Fair will hold at the Lagos Television Ground in Ikeja Lagos, from September 17-19, 2015.