President Buhari signs International Cocoa Agreement 2010

Malam Garba Shehu, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on
Media and Publicity, who confirmed this in a statement in Abuja, said
the signing of the Agreement followed its approval by the Federal
Executive Council.

According to him, with the execution of the instrument of accession,
Nigeria undertakes “faithfully to abide by all the stipulations
therein contained” in the Agreement.

Shehu listed other benefits of the Agreement to include strengthening
cooperation between exporting and importing member countries.

He said that the agreement was expected to improve their cocoa
economies through active and better focused project development and
strategies for capacity-building.

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He said: “The 2010 Agreement is also expected to build on the
successes of the 2001 Agreement by implementing measures leading to an
increase in the income of cocoa farmers and by supporting cocoa
producers in improving the functioning of their cocoa economies.

“It will also deliver cocoa of better quality, take effective account
of food-safety issues and help establish social, economic and
environmental sustainability, so that farmers are rewarded for
producing cocoa that meets ethical and environmental considerations.’’