Cocoa Farmers: Only 10% of Nigeria’s Cocoa Beans are Processed Locally

Gilbert Ekugbe

The Cocoa Farmers Association of Nigeria (CFAN) has lamented that only 10 per cent of Nigeria’s Cocoa beans are being processed in the country.

The National President of CFAN, Mr. Adeola Adegoke, said that the 10 per cent is a far cry from the 50 per cent being processed by Ghana and Ivory Coast.

Adegoke said: “We must make sure that there is a deliberate policy to ensure that 50 per cent of our cocoa is processed locally to give job opportunities for Nigerians and strengthen the value chain.

“At least, 50 per cent of our cocoa must be processed locally against the 90 per cent of our cocoa beans currently being exported with only 10 per cent processed locally.”

He added: “The government and stakeholders must invest more in our local processing to create more markets and create better opportunities in terms of consumption.

“We can key this into the school feeding programme of the federal government. These are deliberate strategies that can create a boom and boost for our local cocoa economy in Nigeria.”

According to him, Nigerian cocoa farmers presently are enjoying their best of the moment due to the skyrocketing prices of cocoa beans at the international markets and especially considering the fact that Nigeria is presently operating a deregulated cocoa economy after the abolition of the cocoa board in the year 1986.

“Presently, we are not envying our counterparts cocoa farmers in Ghana and Ivory Coast due to the system of their cocoa economy which does not give them the opportunity to enjoy the present surge in cocoa prices as a result of the future cocoa contract being executed by their respective cocoa boards.

“In fact, we were reliably informed that the price of the two respective giant cocoa origin countries are paying their cocoa farmers were the prices of cocoa as at April, 2023 that was around $ 2,700 per tonne,” he said.

“Let us forget the new increment in cocoa prices in Ivory Coast and Ghana of recent where it was done at 50 per cent increments at both countries just last week and this week respectively,” he added.

He tasked the federal government to increase the production and productivity of smallholder cocoa farmers’ farms holdings through the provisions of subsidised farm inputs, credit facility, capacity building and the likes to improve their livelihoods.

He said, “We must start to regulate and promote the Nigerian cocoa economy through the National Cocoa Management Committee (NCMC) where more investment into the sector will be guaranteed and the committee can achieve stable regulatory framework that controls quality, smuggling, pesticides control, extension management, R&D, traceability, FMAFS and State Cocoa Producing Governments synergy, child labor eradication, deforestation control and National Cocoa Plan implementation.”

He advised that the NCMC must not get involved in buying and selling cocoa beans, but provide cocoa beans stabilisation support funding in future when necessary especially when cocoa price nosedive downwards beyond cocoa farmers economic capacity as being done in other developed countries on other commodities.

“Nigeria is moving towards a sustainable cocoa economy with a renewed hope agenda of the present administration,” he added.