The Foundation for Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta (PIND), in conjunction with its sister organization the U.S.-based Niger Delta Partnership Initiatives (NDPI), is hosting the third edition of its Niger Delta Development Forum (NDDF) at Monty Suites in Calabar, Cross Rivers State, on 25-26 November 2014, with the theme “Unlocking Investment Opportunities in Agriculture in the Niger Delta for Regional Competitiveness”.

The un-competitiveness state of agriculture of the Niger Delta is compounded by an unproductive agricultural model, poor market access and limited social safety nets in the rural areas. Taking full advantage of opportunities in agriculture will require investment-driven strategic partnerships with the private sector as well as investment drives to unlock potential of our States in agriculture. Stakeholders in Niger Delta states, including policy makers and market actors, need to collaborate to overcome some major challenges associated with infrastructure, barriers to doing business, conflicts and security risks, low skill levels and access to appropriate technology.

This forum will bring together leaders from government, civil society, development community and business membership organizations/trade associations and resource poor farmers for an issue-based interaction that will explore how to collectively shape policies, programs and partnerships that will make agriculture in the Niger Delta investment attractive and competitive in the next 2 – 5 years.

The keynote on the theme of the event will be provided by Federal Minister of Agriculture Dr. Akin Adesina. Partners for this Forum include Nigerian Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD), Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), United States Agency for International Development (USAID), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), UK Department for International Development (DFID), among others.

The main theme for the event is divided into 4 sub-themes, including:

• Investment opportunities in local agricultural value chain commodities
• Impacts of conflicts and insecurity on investments in Agriculture
• Opportunities for Women and Youth in Agriculture
• Government perspectives on Agricultural investments

During the two-day meeting in Calabar, participants will have the opportunity to generate active commitments toward new priorities, strategies and targets for achieving results and impacts, with special focus on sustained, agriculture-led growth for the region, propelled by stronger private sector investment and public-private partnerships.

The NDDF Calabar 2014 is open to everyone who is interested in attending. However, due to space limitations and in the interest of maximizing the impact of the forum, interested participants are encouraged to submit their registration here. For more about the upcoming forum, go to www.nddforum.org, www.pindfoundation.org and www.ndlink.org.

NDDF 2013: Promoting New Approaches for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development from PIND Foundation on Vimeo.