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In its bid to strengthen the nexus between the agriculture sector and the capital market, the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS) has unveiled plans to hold its 26th Annual Stockbrokers’ Conference.
This year’s conference which is themed: “Capital Market and Agricultural Development in Nigeria: Issues and the way forward, is scheduled to be held in Benin City from Wednesday, September 7, 2022 to Friday, September 9, 2022. The conference will be declared open by the Executive Governor of Edo State, who is also a Chartered Stockbroker.
The Institute in a statement said the conference theme was carefully chosen to provide a platform to enable experts advise the Federal Government on how it can leverage the commodities market to grow the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) into a double digit, provide food security, guarantee employment, eliminate banditry and terrorism.
“The Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) says agriculture is the foundation of the Nigerian economy, employing about 35 per cent of the country’s population. The sector also contributes approximately a quarter of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) despite the presence of crude oil. Consequently, agriculture is a sector that has been of topmost priority to the Nigerian capital market. Two companies in the agricultural sector, Okomu Oil Palm plc and Presco Plc, have ranked among the highest price gainers on the NGX in recent times.
It is on this basis that the 2022 Annual Stockbrokers Conference beams its searchlight on agriculture, exploring the nexus between the sector and the capital market as drivers of employment and economic growth, and proffering effective strategies to restore Nigeria to the path of double-digit growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP)through agricultural development”, It said.
The high-profile event, which would attract top government functionaries, capital market regulators and operators and captains of industries would seek to address Commodity Exchanges and Agricultural Development in Nigeria, the cost of food importation with the adverse effect on foreign exchange earnings, Harnessing Technology to Drive Innovation and Growth in the Capital Market, Advancing Financial Inclusion and Capital Market Literacy in Nigeria among others.