The Securities and Exchange Commission has described commodities exchanges as critical to enabling an environment that will create jobs and facilitate economic development.
The Director-General, SEC, Mr Lamido Yuguda, said this at a stakeholders’ sensitisation workshop on commodities standards organised in collaboration with the Standards Organisation of Nigeria in Kano on Thursday, according to a statement.
According to Yuguda, commodities exchanges have the potential to efficiently link commodities to industries, thereby creating jobs, improving living standards and unlocking the economic potentials of farming communities, among others.
He described the workshop as timely, considering the government’s policy shift towards economic diversification and the need to deepen capacity across the agricultural value chain.
He said, “I am happy to report that the Ecosystem Roadmap Implementation Committee has been working tirelessly on the development of a grading and standardisation system. The initial stage of the development process would concentrate on the delivery of standards for agricultural commodities.
“In this regard, we are working closely with the SON to create awareness for existing agricultural commodities standards, but more essentially to obtain feedback from stakeholders on the standards to be presented for consideration of stakeholders at this Workshop to trigger a review of inadequate standards if and where applicable.”
The SON DG, Mallam Farouk Salim, was quoted as saying that the role and importance of commodity markets could not be overemphasised in connecting both producers and consumers in a centralised liquid marketplace and for the economic growth of the nation.
According to him, countries with older and better commodity exchanges have historically gained an economic advantage over others.
He added that SON was ready to partner in areas where its services and products are needed in support of Nigeria’s readiness to key into the global sustainable commodity market.
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