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By Amah<\/p>\n
The National Palm Produce Association of Nigeria (NPPAN), says Nigeria spends 600 million dollars on palm oil importation annually.<\/p>\n
Mr Alphonsus Inyang, National President of the association, stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Abuja.<\/p>\n
He described the expenses as unhealthy for national development.<\/p>\n
Inyang said the money could have been saved and injected into the economy if the palm oil sub-sector was given due attention by successive governments.<\/p>\n
The president regretted that Nigeria, which was self-sufficient in palm oil production in the past,\u00a0 now spends a huge amount to import the same product.<\/p>\n
Inyang recalled that in the 60s, Nigeria was number one in palm oil production and exportation globally, controlling over 60 percent of world palm oil.<\/p>\n
He said that the reverse was the case at the moment as over 50 percent of what we consume is imported.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the moment, the country occupies the fifth position in the league of palm oil-producing countries after Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Colombia.<\/p>\n
\u201cNigeria may even lose the position to smaller countries, which are investing heavily in the sector.<\/p>\n
\u201cIndonesia occupies the first position,\u00a0 producing 50 million metric tons, Malaysia second with 19 million metric tons, Thailand 3.28 million and Colombia 1.9 million metric tons,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The president attributed the challenge to the neglect of the sector by successive governments.<\/p>\n
Inyang said that based on the U.S.\u00a0 Department of Agriculture, Nigeria currently occupies fifth position in the league of palm oil-producing countries with 1.5 percent or 1.4 million metric tons of the world\u2019s total output.<\/p>\n
\u201cNigeria was overthrown as the world\u2019s largest palm oil producer and exporter by Malaysia and Indonesia in 1966.<\/p>\n
\u201cCurrently, Nigeria is the largest consumer of the product in the continent, consuming approximately three million metric tons yearly.<\/p>\n
\u201cDomestic production stands at less than 1.4 million metric tons, leaving a deficit of over 1.6 million metric tons,\u2019\u2019 he said.<\/p>\n
Inyang urged the government, specifically the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, to support NPPAN members with seedlings to develop 250,000 hectares per annum.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur members can plant up to 250,000 hectares per year through the association\u2019s National Oil Palm Strategy Development Plan; all we want are inputs.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe government does not need to give and develop land for us, we need seedlings, fertilizers, logistics, and implements to close this gap within four years.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will also create new millionaires in 28 states of the federation,\u201d he said. (NAN)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Amah The National Palm Produce Association of Nigeria (NPPAN), says Nigeria spends 600 million dollars on palm oil importation…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":129,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,2],"tags":[40,38,39],"class_list":["post-121","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business-economy","category-news","tag-agriculture","tag-national-palm-produce-association-of-nigeria","tag-palm-oil"],"yoast_head":"\n