tpia@:

and guess what- even the media can be fooled:

Yes, very shameful, the 'gay Syrian girl ' turned out to be a married 'white American man' - never mind 

morpheus24:

The issue here is not FDI capital inflow in the acquisition of land and leases  but the terms of contract and negotiation.

What does Africa get out of the deal? If it involves a transfer of technology and modernization of the agricultural sector then I am all for it.

It is incumbent on the African leaders to device a strategy to leverage the inflow of this expertise, knowledge and capital.

A case in point is China who upon allowing several manufacturing bases settle in their country per cheap sources of labor, have been able to duplicate the technology these transfers bring with them and in the long term are net beneficiaries of this exchange.

Very good point, I remember reading an article in the VOA site, heres a quote from it:--

[size=18pt]"[/size]Part of the reason why Lekki Free Zone is so attractive to the Chinese is that, the Chinese government is encouraging those companies which are shutting down in China to move out,” he added. “There are funds which the government has provided for these companies to encourage them to move out to come and set up their factories in other parts of the world. We have that market. Now the Nigeria government is also encouraging investors to go to China and probably buy those factories, which are shut down, maybe at a quarter of the price and bring them into Lekki, set it up and manufacture those goods which you know you have 100 percent market right here.[size=18pt]"[/size]

[size=13pt]Yinka Shonibare[/size] becomes the first Nigerian artist whose work will grace Trafalgar Square's (London) fourth plinth.

[img]http://2.bp..com/_JF8UtJK3aog/SU2EuBwKCqI/AAAAAAAAJEA/cqoiPnymoUw/s1600/1.jpg[/img]

fried-rice:

I think The Stained teethed poster is right, we complain too much without acting.
the poster could lead by example by setting himself ablaze in front of the national assembly
this could lead to a bigger revolt as seen in Tunis, Algeria and Egypt

OMG! 

ekt_bear:

This isn't really about cleverness. It is about finding ways of boosting productivity.

Yes increasing productivity is a great motive, but can you give an example of where this has been done successfully, before in Africa?

ekt_bear:

We cannot both refuse to take advantage of the opportunities available in Nigeria and also prevent others from doing so. That makes no sense.

I totally agree, which is why I said that there needs to be an encouragement drive at the federal and state level to encourage Nigerians to take full responsibility; If its so profitable why not?

ekt_bear:


Granted, [size=15pt]it'll be necessary to ensure that you don't get ripped off[/size]. But it still seems important to explore the option.

Sun of god:

Africa being colonized all over again.

I wonder how long it will be before a wave of famines hit the continent?

We just dont learn - and these corrupt leaders of ours will never understand the evil they have done.

Tell me about it! Its an internal and external attack at the same time

jensinmi:

@ 2muchlogic: I don dey feel you throughout this thread.

I do have to say that Aribisala0 has a point here.

Biotech is good and nice. But we can still go very far with the most basic stuff.

Problem is we have not even tried at all. It doesn't take more than water, seed, and tractors to begin the process.
We just haven't been bothered yet.

I'm very interested in Agriculture. I need to get some arable farm land in my Ekiti State.
I'm not greedy. 500 hectares is enough for a start.  

I see what you mean but this is the 21st century, if all Nigerians need is BASIC, SIMPLE farming then why do they need to call in the South Koreans?

For example how can farmers PLAN what they plant? you will need a good information system and computer models to do so. What about equipment? Who will design and manufacture it? Do Nigerians invent for their own AFRICAN environment or continue to import from foreigners? What about research into the farming environment? What about creating value-added products for export? For example look at the west they take cocoa form Africa for peanuts then sell it for a fortune in the form of Ice-cream, soft-drinks and chocolate - they make billions! The Japanese make millions by exporting yogurts! So I think its better to move away from the BASIC approach with a cutlass and HOE - its so yesterday   The emphasis instead should be on modern farming and the production of value-added products.

aribisala0:

[size=14pt]in life keep it simple. never mind bio tech. just feeding people is huge[/size]. do you go to the market.
c

In the context which you used the word 'simple' it implied primitive - SIMPLE 

aribisala0:


the best solutions are often simple
many african countries already export food.there are [size=14pt]basic technologies already available[/size] to grow what we produce [size=14pt]what is lacking is capital/enterprise.[/size]

even now i believe we are still a leading producer of groundnuts i think number5 or so.

You are going round in circles to prove that you did not mean primitive - funny 

aribisala0:

in life keep it simple. never mind bio tech. just feeding people is huge. do you go to the market.
c

Yes I prefer a supermarket or online shopping not a dirty market with people haggling no; if you keep it simple and primitive how can you improve the crop yields and quality of food?

It looks like the next IMF leader will be Christine Lagarde, several African leaders declared their support for the French finance minister, and a potential rival declined to challenge her.

Katsumoto:

It is projected that the world will not be able to feed its population in another twenty years. Arable and fertile farmland will be more important than resource deposits. Europeans and Asians are forward thinking by grabbing the next most important resource after water, land.

There is no reason why africans cant invest in technology to feed its population and sell to these asians instead of them valuing african land at $2 per hectare. Believe me, there is a lot of money to be made from agriculture in the coming years.

Thats correct, The middle classes in the emerging economies are pushing the price of food through the roof.  Africa has the natural advantage yet again, but unfortunately they lack the bio-technology, because their governments and private sector have NOT invest in it.

For example, England has about 3 months of Sun thats it! Yet the power sector is investing in solar energy! How, the government is forcing the energy companies to invest; yet in Nigeria they not only cannot generate electricity, the government is not even serious about solar energy - WHY? Next the west will be supplying Ekiti with solar energy!

Why can't the government encourage NIGERIANs to invest in MODERN farming?  I have had my eye on this for a few years now and its obvious the bio-tech industry is going to be huge in the future.

[size=18pt]Hedge funds 'grabbing land' in Africa[/size]

Hedge funds are behind "land grabs" in Africa to boost their profits in the food and biofuel sectors, a US think-tank says.

In a report, the Oakland Institute said hedge funds and other foreign firms had acquired large swathes of African land, often without proper contracts.

It said the acquisitions had displaced millions of small farmers.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-13688683

OAM4J:

Whao! Interesting read. Every one should read it.

[size=18pt]Hedge funds 'grabbing land' in Africa[/size]

Hedge funds are behind "land grabs" in Africa to boost their profits in the food and biofuel sectors, a US think-tank says.

In a report, the Oakland Institute said hedge funds and other foreign firms had acquired large swathes of African land, often without proper contracts.

It said the acquisitions had displaced millions of small farmers.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-13688683

So many imbeciles on this thread, coming in and out of the thread taking about conspiracy theories and pessimism, you twits have got me laughing in korean again  

Donlittle:

how comfortable will nigeria be, if our past and even new politicians invested the stolen loot in our country?
Or will it be worser than this as a result of mismanagement? Since we know management in Nigeria is zero

I don't think the economy would be better off (higher GDP), but Nigeria would still be under-developed, since the looters lack ethics, vision and creativity.

aribisala0:

they love us more than themselves.that is koreans for you

And the whole world know what South Korean love is like just ask their STARVING North Korean brothers and sisters 

nakedwire:

Why don't they build processing facilities to process the agricultural produce in Nigeria.
Instead, they want to export to factories in their country and our people will import the finished product back to nigeria at 10 times the original price.

thats right, just like tinned tomatoes and noodles

jmaine:

Guess i was mistaken i could answer you and engage you in a tangible debate (not argument) .  

A debate is a formal argument, so don't waste time trying to make a demarcation.  

jmaine:

you pass for a fellow who doesn't know how to read replies for his questions . . Did you see this  below . . am convinced you just graze through posts without seeking for your answers and when you see one you force yourself to deny it . . I did post a lot of things, why pick out a few which obviously you have no strong footing to stand and dwell on, even retorting am defending GLO when it's operations and contributions are glaring, what a joke   . .could it be the nairaland penchant to always win at all cost 

Don't by a s.illy billy, You broke the rules by ignoring my questions and asking irrelevant ones.  If you read my replies instead of your own, you would realize that I believe glo is a good company, well run and we should all be proud of it.  I see it advertised on CNN regularly and they always promote Nigerian life and artists.  But to operate in a Ivory coast (a war-zone), Ghana (dominated by Vodafone) and Republic of Benin (lol!) is laughable.  

[size=18pt]You simply lack the depth to respond constructively to simple questions – what a simpleton (laughing in Korean).[/size]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Exactly! This discussion has gone on for too long! if people could give straight answers then we could all learn a little.  the issue is beyond Ekiti, its about Nigeria and Africa in general.  Some, gullible ones on this thread keep waffling on about the Koreans will hand the project back to Ekiti after 3 years, hand what back? worn out machinery or their Korean brains? I wonder where Ekiti will have to get the spare parts from? let me guess  But if we question anything, we are pessimistic.  If africans cannot grow their own food and use their education in biotechnology to become more proficient then Africa's problems are deeper than the Atlantic ocean!!!

jmaine:

Moving in circles is not my thing, am not configured to endure endless and futile arguments . . . follow up my flow line and you will appreciate the fact that in weighing a problem you not only look at the pros and cons but you also look at where can be improved . .But people over played the negative aspects and all i did was bring appreciate all side of the divide and possibly give a reason as to why they seemed so  . . And please in my posts watch out for the answers you require, cos they are always embedded in my replies .   . .You need to be open minded to see them clearly . . .

I asked a question below and you dodged it , why?

GLO is a solely Nigerian owned company doing well in one of the most competitive industry in Nigeria. . IBB or no IBB, GLO is doing well, and i believe  Mike Adenuga is the owner unless you substantially convince us that IBB owns Glo . .  which i doubt . .  Abacha, highly favoured Dangote, does that make Dangote a front for Abacha holdings ?

GLO signifies the Nigerian content absolutely in a field that was dominated by foreign companies and am content with the emboldened part since they contribute a lot to the GDP of my dear country Nigeria . . What more should i ask . .

You have not answered any of my questions constructively, now you attempt to bore the living daylights out of everyone by defending GLO and asking if I believe there are any good people left in government - what a joke!  

2muchlogic:

Well I think you are contradicting yourself, on the one hand you accuse people of being pessimistic then you claim:

When will that moment be? There has never been good over-sight due to the absence of strong institutions therefore the skepticism is justified. GLO Babangidas stolen loot invested is a good NIGERIAN company, a good example of buying and implementing technology rather than inventing it.  [size=17pt]However, contrary to its name it has NOT gone global I wonder why? maybe its due to the presence of stringent telecommunication regulations[/size].  

blacksta:

nonsense = all the ones the government have been running where are they today.

2 x WRONG ≠ RIGHT

Wizardofoz:

Good question.

I know he studied Law at Ife, not sure if he actually went to Law School?

And No, he is not an accountant. he studied international Taxation at Harvard; a certificate course I am thinking. Dont think it was a degree course, just some expensive padi-padi course to shore up his 'heavy weight' cred in 'Corporate Nigeria'

Reminds me of Fola Adeola, who claimed to have advanced his education at Harvard, with his HND from YABATECH. Talk about big waste of money. Smart Harvard, they love awoooooof like mad.

Thanks for the info naija people and their dodgy qualifications lol!

jmaine:

Investment in the buried but highly profitable agricultural minefield is being considered for resuscitation in an inland state and [size=18pt]people are being overtly and in-considerably pessimistic[/size] . . . The same lands that has remained idle for years and intelligent minds keep asking us why are we crying about food scarcity when our lands are so fertile . . . It's like saying the likes of SHELL, and the other major players in oil and gas downstream sectors should have been prevented from coming to develop that sector simply because they would recolonize all of us . . .

It's a pity that we allowed our glaring tribal and ethnic lines dating pre independence(which provided an immense breeding ground for corruption and nepotism) to divert our attention from what we would have gained from the likes of Shell and co . . Wish there will also be an interest in mining potential of Ekiti state cos they are some useful minerals underground that could spring out good industries nearby . .  [size=18pt]Foreign investment with good governing oversight will yield good results any day[/size] . . .

Well I think you are contradicting yourself, on the one hand you accuse people of being pessimistic then you claim:

jmaine:


And the moment the emboldened part below is handled efficiently [/b]due to our evolving democratic experiment . .then i see no reason why we should chose to remain stubbornly stagnant than accept little assistance wherever possible while we learn and become [b]challenged . . . GLO is making a statement to that effect . . . We still have some good people in Government . . and hope you believe that ?

When will that moment be? There has never been good over-sight due to the absence of strong institutions therefore the skepticism is justified. GLO Babangidas stolen loot invested is a good NIGERIAN company, a good example of buying and implementing technology rather than inventing it.  However, contrary to its name it has NOT gone global I wonder why? maybe its due to the presence of stringent telecommunication regulations.  

When did Jimoh Ibrahim become a "Barrister"? I though he was an accountant I have been saying that we need some world class institutions to tackle most of the problems at present.

jmaine:

Investment in the buried but highly profitable agricultural minefield is being considered for resuscitation in an inland state and people are being overtly and in-considerably pessimistic . . . The same lands that has remained idle for years

Why has it remained idle for so long? maybe those who love the place so much on NL can tell us why

jmaine:

It's like saying the likes of SHELL, and the other major players in oil and gas downstream sectors should have been prevented from coming to the develop that sector simply because they would recolonize all of us . . .

They have re-colonized Nigeria, are you unaware of their exploits? The pollution? Now large areas of land are USELESS.

jmaine:


Hope we will also have interest in mining potential of Ekiti state cos they are some useful minerals underground that could spring out good industries nearby . , .

Typical, 'let foreigners do it for us' - whats all of the education in Nigeria for? Where are the companies?

jmaine:

Foreign investment with good governing oversight will yield good results any day . . .

How often dose that happen in Nigeria? Do you think it will start in Ekiti lol!

Ikengawo:

QUALITY CONTROL

our problem isn't corruption or incompetence. every country in the world is corrupt and we know damn well what we're doing too much to be incompetent because most of nigerias problems were created on purpose by nigerians

but one pattern is prevalent in our culture. If you give a man 100,000 naira to build a common traffic light, he will search the globe for the cheapest piece of rubbish possible and plant it on the street to that he can steal the money. he will seldom pay his workers leading to work delays, lazy haphazard work if not outright strike and mutiny.


look at nollywood. you can give a nollywood producer 1 million usd to shoot a movie and he'll give you 1000 extremely low quality movies.
we have a wanderlust with low quality. THAT is the problem with nigeria. we don't want to build world quality hospitals, schools, or anything that works to the public benefit BUT we are totally capable of it cause the money and capability is there. If we weren't capable of building things of beauty and quality then why are the interiors of nigerian mansions the most consistently elegant on the entire continent? our mansions are marvels of architecture, but our school of architectures look like cement boxes. Even look at our governor's offices and Aso Rock it's self, nothing in the country can rival either of these things.


nigerians can only enforce quality when it comes to self servicing. they can only apply quality when it directly benefits THEMSELVES and themselves only, but see quality for the public good as expendable. This is why nigeria is backwards. we have EVERYTHING in the world, just at an inferior quality to the rest of the world.


Once we have strict quality control of everything from roads to pencils, nigeria can't move forward because our culture makes many of us void of the appreciation of public quality.

Quality control is primarily a MICRO-Economic issue, Nigeria needs serious MACRO-Economic reforms which can be created and monitored by WORLD CLASS national institutions.  

What will make them world class?

Independence (Free from politics)
Professionalism
Transparency

For example if the EFCC had the 3 qualities listed above Nigeria would be one of the least corrupt countries in the world. Empirical evidence shows that It takes around 10 years to establish a national institution, which means the EFCC could have been world class by now and a model for other African nations.

How can we build strong institutions? By successive focused, visionary governments; unfortunately at present Nigeria has no political continuity.  Most of the power is concentrated at the centre and each president raises the hopes of the masses with fake promises. the result is little or nothing to show after each term and more precious years down the tube.

what a suprise!

emmatok:

No Nigerian Bank can do that, in these Sanusi era.

Can you expand on that please? do you think food production is suitable for BOT? Can farmers from Nigeria not study bio-technology?

emmatok:

Corrected Mr Teacher.

Have you ever heard of BOT b4?

You are talking as if they will ship the land and the equipment away to their country when they are leaving.

Weather they like it or not they are going to pay TAX on that investment, it is left to government to determine how much they pay.

I will like you to tell me which in Nigerian bank as at today will borrow any state govt $400milla.

And at what interest rate% if they(Nigerian banks ) will.

Any way you look at it, it is a WIN WIN for EKITI people.

Naw! I did not say that lol! BOT? Yes that stands for Bank Of Tanzania lol! and why can't a Nigerian bank lend a state $400 million for development? Every time i switch on CNN I see adverts for Nigerian banks and they don't come cheap

EzeUche!:

Africans can be quite foolish people. Selling off their land to the highest bidder. What other continent does this? In the Americas, especially in the United States, they protect their local farmers and will not allow foreign investors to purchase arable land in such land grabs.

If you foolish did not know, arable land is considered an integral part of a nation's security interest. Why can't Africans think for once. This is not about jobs and manufacturing. They are buying land to feed their own nation, not feed our own.

Exactly! They should go and read up on CAP, the Europeans produce so much food they have to burn it! Since WW2 they have made food security a top priority.  North Koreans are starving and they think South Koreans can boost their Agriculture? If it was electronics or microchips maybe but Agriculture?  What comparative advantage do Africans have apart form mineral resources and land?

This is great for Ekiti, Koreans have a long history of doing great things for Africans.  The proposal states:

The proposed transformation of agriculture in the state is expected to generate not less than 25,000 jobs in the first year and help boost farm yield in the state.

wow! 25,000 jobs at the minimum wage, and it will boost the crop yeild too with their technology; Why can't all the education from Ekiti over the years cannot achieve that? Then it goes on to say:

Soo-Moon noted that the project is aimed at poverty eradication, food security and job provision adding that a minimum of 125,000 jobs would be provided under the scheme in four years. 

The Koreans are coming to reduce poverty for people in Ekiti, and create 100,000 jobs in 3 years? Wow, thats what you call an Asian miracle.  I think the people in Ekiti should vote for  Soo-Moon as the next govenor of the state.

He added that the investors would hand over the project to the Ekiti State Government after three years of managing it, explaining further that the scheme is also expected to provide free construction materials as well as tools for rural farmers.

The Korean business executive disclosed that SYNCTOP would buy all agricultural produce generated from the project.

It appears they love people in ekiti so much they want to employ, feed and teach them, whilst creating 125,000 jobs in 4 years – sounds too good to be true lol!

lol! 

dodgy 

dodgy