The Nigerian Export Promotion Council has harped on the need for oil palm farmers and processors to scale up production to meet the rising demand for palm oil in the export market.
NEPC Trade Promotion Advisor, Ado Ekiti Export Assistance Office, Mrs Iyabode Abe, said, “Palm oil is ranked to be ‘Category A’ product in the ‘Zero oil plan’ and it trades at an average of $35billion annually at the global market with Nigeria’s target share of the market at five per cent amounting to $1.8billion.
“With this potential, it becomes imperative that production is scaled up to meet the rising demand of the export market.
Nigeria is currently the largest palm oil producer in Africa and ranked fifth in the world,” she said.
Abe spoke in Ado Ekiti on Friday during a technical intervention training programme on oil palm development for export in Ekiti State with the theme, ‘Best practices for enhanced production and processing of quality palm oil for export’ organised for oil palm farmers and processors by the NEPC .
The advisor urged the farmers and processors to as well “imbibe best practices in processing in line with global value addition standards and as well deployment of modern technology for quality oil palm production”.
According to her, the training is part of the attempt by the Federal Government to address the challenges of weak organisational support and lack of capacity building facing the farmers and to ensure “increased participation of the organised private sectors and individual farmers while the government provides the impetus for the sector to thrive.
“We in NEPC are eager to see what the next few years will hold for this important agricultural product as a veritable tool for economic change,” she said.
Ekiti State Commissioner for Trade and Industries, Muyiwa Olumilua, said that in view of the fact that the country had the capacity, “Nothing stopped Nigeria from looking beyond five per cent of the yearly $35 billion global market to about 20 per cent of that figure which is about $7billion.What we need is to strengthen our technological base and follow due processes”.
Copyright PUNCH.
All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from PUNCH.
Contact: [email protected]
