Zulum to Resuscitate Moribund Tomato Factory in Borno

Michael Olugbode in Maiduguri

Borno State Government is set to revive the state-owned tomato factory. The plan of the government was announced by the State Governor, Prof. Babagana Zulum, when he paid an unscheduled visit to the factory located along the Maiduguri-Damaturu highway.

During the visit, Zulum directed that while the state would resuscitate the existing facilities at the factory, additional modern facilities would be procured to enhance its operational capacity.

Zulum noted that in preparation for reviving the factory, the state has established five hectares of drip-irrigated tomato farms, which will be expanded to about 100 hectares when it starts full-capacity operation.

He said: “My main intention is to see how we shall resuscitate the moribund factories at the Borno industrial park, particularly the tomato paste factory. I understand that the challenge is the lack of raw materials that would provide a feed stock for the tomato factory.”

He added that: “We have decided to establish a robust drip irrigation system using net house to produce tomatoes. I am happy to note that we are working under a public-private partnership to establish at least a minimum of 100 hectares of tomato plantation.

“You can see we started with 5 hectares, and because of the variety of tomatoes we produce here, each hectare will produce about 60 tons. When we expand it to 100 hectares, we will get nothing less than 6,000 tonnes.”

Earlier last week, the governor was at NEITEL Shoe and Tenary Factory to assess the progress made in its operations.

The company had been resuscitated through a public-private partnership aimed at creating jobs and generating wealth for the state.

Speaking during the visit to NEITEL, said: “The government has entered a public-private partnership to run this important factory. You have seen it all: the factory now operates at about 70% capacity. Let me commend our partner for partnering with Borno State Government.”

He added that: “You can see the company is ready to export about four containers of hide and skin. The products were taken to Italy, and it has been certified that our products are of good quality.

The Governor also stated that: “The factory now produces about 100,000 hides and skin monthly. This is part of government’s effort to create jobs, generate income and expand the sources of wealth creation in the state.”