The Niger State government has entered into a partnership worth $25 million with PJS Group.
The partnership was facilitated by the governor, Mohammed Umaru Bago, who is in the United States of America for an official visit.
The agreement, which is tagged "Expansion Strategy for 2024 in Niger State," will include a shea butter extraction factory, soya and rice oil production, among others.
The Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mal. Bologi Ibrahim, said in a statement that the PJS group has an existing $15 investment in Niger State Agro Farms Ltd., a large-scale rice farm in Swashi village, Borgu Local Government Area, covering 3,000 hectares.
It has equally invested in Kiara Rice Mills Limited in Kpatsuwa village, Mokwa Local Government Area of the state, producing 350,000 metric tonnes of rice annually.
The expected results of all the recent partnerships are expected to also create jobs and increase agricultural activities with commensurate yields, in line with the agricultural revolution of the farmer governor.
The Niger/Kogi area command of the Nigeria Customs Service has recorded seizures and detention of eight units of assorted exotics and other vehicles through the anti-smuggling operations carried out by the men of the area command.
The Area Comptroller of the Service in Niger State, Mr. Busayo Oluwagbemiga Kadejo, stated this at a media briefing held at the command headquarters in Minna Tuesday.
He disclosed that the area command recorded another seizure of 35 jerry-cans of premium motor spirit (PMS), 25 litres each, stating that the products had already been auctioned as a result of their inflammatory nature.
He said the disposal of the products was sought, and permission was granted by the Comptroller General of the service, with the accrued proceeds paid into the Federation Account.
According to the area comptroller, the cumulative duty paid value of all the seized items in the month of December 2023 amounted to about N 194,780,000.
"In December 2023, the command was also able to recover a total sum of twelve million six hundred and five thousand four hundred and thirty nine naira only (N12,605,439), principally from demand notice," he stated.
In the same vein, the comptroller told journalists that the command made 65 seizures with a cumulative duty paid value of two hundred and six million, three hundred and one thousand, nine hundred and thirty-three thousand naira (N206,301,933.00).
Speaking further, Mr. Busayo Kadejo noted that the achievements recorded by the area command were the massive deployment of intelligence and the application of the service rules of engagement, which resulted in the success recorded without any casualties.
"The sincere efforts of our brave and gallant officers are quite commendable, and I assure them that their bold sacrifices will not go unnoticed.
"I want to make it clear again that the Federal Government's directive on border closure is still very much in force in Babanna, the only border station in the command," he said.
He warned smugglers and other criminally minded elements to steer clear of the area command, adding that his command will continue to launch unprecedented onslaughts against them, stating that "we will not spare them no matter how highly placed they are in society.
"This is a stern warning to smugglers that we will always discover all their routes and ways used in smuggling, make seizures, effect arrests, and cripple their operations," he added.
