21/08/2023 (Daily Trust) - In this interview, the president of the Oil Palm Growers Association of Nigeria (OPGAN), Mr Joe Onyiuke, who is a lawyer and entrepreneur, speaks on how the federal government can attain mass employment, food security and stop the $500m (N430 billion at N860/$) spent annually to import palm oil into the country.

How has Nigeria, a net producer of palm oil remained an importer?

Governments in the past were not developing small business holders while they developed other sectors that they felt were more organised in the sense that they had collaterals to pick up single-digit and long-term loans and all that.

However the critical mass that will create employment and generate revenue for the government in terms of taxation and GDP growth was neglected in a way that they began to have numerous problems.

First, they were majorly handicapped in the previous administration and system of the country. Secondly, access to high-quality seed materials has been very low and even almost impossible.

Thirdly, access to funding to acquire modern processing mills to process high-quality products was not available and so they suffered so many post-harvest losses.

Most times, what they produced was below standard because they are using their bare hands and post-harvest losses are so huge. The provision of these facilities could create very big incentives to any farmer because they are major issues.

Also, the inability of our state governors to issue certificates of occupancy for people’s farms remains a huge setback for agricultural development.

When you issue C of O to them, you unlock their potential to have access to funding. This is because there is no financial institution in the country that would not ask for the basics when you request a loan. The socio-economic impact of oil palm is so large that today, our body cream, margarine, butter, mayonnaise, and even vegetable oil, are all bleached palm oil. The pasta, noodles, and biscuits, all these are from palm oil.

In fact, the demand for palm oil in food industries is so huge that it has been found in other things including cosmetics, paints, polish, and even pharmaceutical industries. And these are things that will unlock the potential of this country. So the government should refocus on these three crops.

In the 1960s, we were known for cocoa, oil palm, and rubber. The Chinese and foreign investors were able to come in because of the raw materials that were available in large quantities.

Countries like Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia used their crude oil resources to develop their own palm oil sector to create widespread employment opportunities and all that. They have policies in place to safeguard local production. You must check your borders to ensure they are not porous.

Look at how much the country has lost in terms of importation. Today, people are importing polished palm oil and vegetable oil in the name of crude palm oil into the country.

https://dailytrust.com/nigeria-spends-n430bn-annually-to-import-palm-oil-onyiuke/