Reforms laid foundation for Nigeria’s sugar self-sufficiency — NSDC Boss

The Executive Secretary/CEO of the National Sugar Development Council (NSDC), Mr. Kamar Bakrin, has said the bold, macroeconomic reforms put in place by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu have made local sugar production attractive and cleared the pathway for the country to achieve self-sufficiency. Bakrin was speaking as a panelist at the 32nd Nigerian Economic Summit (NESG #32), on the topic, “Strengthening Policy Coordination for the Non-alcoholic Drink Sector Competitiveness.” He said the reforms have brought stability to the economy, adding that the next step is to turn stability into growth that works for ordinary Nigerians.

He stated further: “Our most pressing priorities are well known: jobs, especially for young people; rural livelihoods; security; pressure on foreign exchange; food security; and the cost of living. “Every Government must make choices among competing priorities. Our contribution as a Council is to make sure that, when those choices are made, the full economic picture of the sugar value chain is on the table.

This is because very few sectors touch all of these priorities at once the way sugar does.” Responding to the Summit’s theme of turning stability into growth that works for ordinary Nigerians, he said sugar offers a practical route. Under the Nigeria Sugar Master Plan (NSMP) 2.0, the goal is self-sufficiency in sugar production. Bakrin said reaching it would save about $1 billion in foreign exchange every year and create about 110,000 direct jobs, most of them in rural communities, on estates, in mills and on outgrower farms where smallholders grow cane for the mills.

“The gains go beyond the factory gate. Sugar estates bring roads, schools, clinics and electricity generated from bagasse, the fibre left after cane is crushed’’.