Nigeria is currently targeting sugar self-sufficiency through a $7.1 billion investment programme over the next 10 years, with projected annual foreign exchange savings of $4.1 billion and about 110,000 direct and indirect jobs.
The executive secretary and chief executive officer of the National Sugar Development Council (NSDC), Kamar Bakrin, disclosed the plan in Abuja over the weekend, saying it aims to raise domestic production from about 27,000 metric tonnes to more than two million tonnes annually.
He said the country consumes approximately 1.8 million tonnes of sugar a year, with more than 97 per cent of domestic consumption refined from imported raw sugar, underscoring the scale of its dependence on foreign supplies.
Subsequently, he said the plan is also expected to support more than one million livelihoods, stimulate economic activity in host communities and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about two million tonnes annually when fully implemented.
“The Council was pursuing three major strategies to boost production. The first is the Sugarcane Outgrower Development Programme, which targets 11,000 hectares of farmer-grown sugarcane and annual production of about 880,000 tonnes.”
