By Vivian Emoni
The Federal Government has validated the Nigeria Cashew Industry Roadmap to promote local processing, increase value addition, create jobs and strengthen the country’s non-oil exports.
The Minister of State for Industry, Sen. John Enoh, announced this on Wednesday in Abuja at the stakeholders’ validation workshop on the roadmap.
Represented by the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Dr Chris Isokpunwu, Enoh said the roadmap would reposition Nigeria from exporting raw cashew nuts to producing competitive value-added cashew products and derivatives.
He said it would also support the establishment of a Nigerian Cashew Project Office to coordinate implementation with industry operators and relevant institutions.
According to him, the roadmap is expected to improve farmers’ incomes, strengthen domestic markets and create employment opportunities, particularly for women and young people.
Enoh said Nigeria currently produces between 300,000 and 350,000 metric tonnes of raw cashew nuts annually, but more than 85 per cent is exported without processing, limiting domestic value addition and industrial growth.
He stressed the need for stronger collaboration among government, industry players and development partners to expand processing, create jobs and increase export earnings.
The minister said the roadmap aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and complemented the 2026 Nigeria Industrial Policy, the Shea Nut Value Addition Strategy and the Cocoa Reform Initiative launched on July 14.
He urged stakeholders to move beyond validation to implementation, saying success would be measured by increased local processing, new factories, jobs created, empowered farmers and higher export earnings.
In a goodwill message, Isokpunwu, represented by the Director of Industrial Development, Mr Mohammed Bala, described the cashew industry as strategic to Nigeria’s economic diversification.
He said the roadmap provided an implementation framework to promote investment, processing, branding and value addition across the cashew value chain.
Also speaking, the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Mr Abubakar Kyari, said cashew remained one of Nigeria’s priority export crops, cultivated in 27 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
Represented by Mr Bukar Musa of the ministry, Kyari said the roadmap would address the absence of a coordinated policy framework and support improved production, processing, marketing and value addition.
The President of the National Cashew Association of Nigeria, Mr Ademola Adesokan, pledged the association’s support for the implementation of the roadmap to strengthen the industry.
The Director-General of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council, Princess Zahrah Audu, said the administration remained committed to promoting productivity, value addition and sustainable economic development. (NAN)
Edited by Francis Onyeukwu