Akwa Ibom State Government is seeking closer collaborations with the Government of Denmark in the area of Agriculture and maritime security with a view to securing the state’s shoreline which is the longest in the country and promoting business in the maritime sector.
Governor Udom Emmanuel proposed the partnership when the Danish Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Sune Krogstrup paid a courtesy visit to him at the government house, Uyo.
Ambassador Krogstrup was visiting Akwa Ibom with a delegation from the United Nations Fund for Population Activities, UNFPA led by the country’s Resident Representative, Mrs. Elizabeth Mueller.
The Governor while welcoming the guests, said the state and Nigeria as a whole were facing some security challenges in the waterways, noting that such collaborations that would check insecurities along the coastline would be appreciated.
Governor Emmanuel commended the Danish government and the United Nations Population Fund for their interests and investment in programmes that promote the well-being of the vulnerable strata of the society such as the School Meal Program which provides meals for children in selected schools in the state.
He however pointed out that the state government should be involved in the implementation of the school meals program and other programs by UNFPA to make it more impactful.
Governor Emmanuel who acknowledged the strides by the United Nations Population Fund in ending gender-based violence said Akwa Ibom was one among few states in the country that has made laws to protect the girl child and clamp down on gender-based violence.
The Danish Ambassador, Mr. Sune Krogstrup, said his visit to the State was to assess the impact and state of the ongoing School Feeding project, School Farms for School Meals (SF4SM) stating that Denmark was set to fund the feeding programme in the state, which aims at improving the nutrition of children.
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The Danish envoy noted that Denmark shares the same objectives with UNFPA in the fight for the right of women and the girl child and in minimizing Gender-Based Violence and conflicts.
Mr. Krogstrup thanked Governor Emmanuel for the warm reception accorded the team, noting that Denmark was ready to partner with the state in areas of agriculture and maritime security, and other sectors.
On her part, the Resident Representative of the United Nations Fund for Population Activities, UNFPA, Ms. Elizabeth Mueller, appreciated Governor Udom Emmanuel for his contributions and collaboration with UNFPA in key intervention areas of reducing maternal mortality, encouraging family planning, and minimizing all forms of gender-based violence in the society.
Mueller made a case for the conduct of a population census in Nigeria which she noted was long overdue, since 2006 adding that the census will help government make informed decisions for the citizenry.
