By OLUWASEYI ODUN EYE-OGUNWOMOJU

The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Mr Abubakar Kyari, on Wednesday, rolled out one million improved cocoa seedlings to be distributed to farmers as step to revive Nigeria’s cocoa industry.

Kyari, who spoke at the Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN), Ibadan, said that the improved seedlings would leave for farms across producing states to replace ageing trees and raise yields.

“The purpose is larger than the seedlings. It is to restore the strength of our cocoa industry, lift the livelihoods of our farmers, grow our export earnings, and return Nigeria to a leading place in the global cocoa economy.”

The minister said that the initiative with the theme: ‘Scaling Sustainable Cocoa Production for Export Competitiveness and Farmer Prosperity under the Renewed Hope Agenda’ would revitalise the industry.

“Cocoa was our leading export and one of our greatest sources of foreign exchange. It built more than wealth. The Cocoa House that still stands over this city was raised from it.

“The University of Ife was founded on it. Free education in the old Western Region was paid for by it. That was the height of it. Today we have fallen out of the top three.

“We did not lose our soil, our climate or our farmers. We lost our place, and our place is what we have come to win back,” he said.

Kyari said that the government has returned agriculture to the centre of our economy, with reforms that are practical and investment that is deliberate.

“The measure of that work is plain: more food on our tables, more value kept within our borders, and more income in the hands that work the land.

“Cocoa stands tall in this vision. Few crops can earn more abroad or build more at home and few carry as much of our history.

“Nigerian cocoa has a heartland, and it is the South-West. We are gathered today at its very source.

“It was in the forests around Ibadan, more than a century ago, that cocoa farming took root in this country and spread.

“The South-West has carried it ever since, and to this day, the zone grows the greater share of all the cocoa Nigeria produces.

“Cocoa is no longer the inheritance of one region. It has reached across the South South, and it is taking root in newer frontiers further north.

“Across our cocoa belt, in the South and beyond, families are tending this crop as their parents did before them. This is a national crop, and a national mission,” he said.

The minister assured that the federal government was determined to reverse the decline in cocoa production.

“Our work rests on three priorities. First, to raise what each farm produces, through better planting material, research and extension.

“Second, to add value at home, so that more of the wealth in every bean is earned in Nigeria rather than abroad.

“Thirdly, to place that prosperity in the hands of the farmer. The goal is a modern, resilient and globally competitive cocoa industry that rewards the people who grow the crop and strengthens the nation that depends on it,” he said.

The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Agriculture And Food Security, Dr Marcus Ogunbiyi, said that cocoa remains one of Nigeria’s most strategic agricultural commodities.

Ogunbiyi said that beyond serving as a significant foreign exchange earner, cocoa provides livelihoods for hundreds of thousands of farming households across several states of the federation.

“However, over the years, the sector has faced numerous challenges, including ageing plantations, declining productivity, poor access to improved planting materials, climate-related stresses, pests and diseases, limited investment in farm rejuvenation and weak value addition.

“One of the most significant outcomes of these efforts is the successful production of one million improved cocoa seedlings by the Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN) under the Federal Government’s approved Public-Private Partnership Framework.

“This initiative is not merely about distributing seedlings. It is about investing in the future of Nigeria’s cocoa economy,” he said.

“It is about restoring ageing plantations, creating opportunities for youth participation in cocoa farming, increasing farmers’ incomes, improving household livelihoods, expanding export opportunities, and strengthening Nigeria’s position as one of the world’s leading producers of premium cocoa,” he said.

Also, the Director, Tree Crops and Climate Change, Ministry of Agriculture, Ogun State, Mr James Oyesola, said that the initiative was the planting of hope, the renewal of confidence, and the reaffirmation of the country’s collective commitment to rebuilding Nigeria’s cocoa industry.

Oyesola said that the improved cocoa seedling planted on Wednesday represented an investment in the future of farmers, a stronger rural economy, increased foreign exchange earnings, and greater food and economic security for Nigeria.

“Nigeria has a proud history as one of the world’s leading cocoa-producing countries.

“With our favourable climate, dedicated farmers, and strong research institutions, we possess all the ingredients needed to reclaim an even stronger position in the global cocoa market.

“Achieving this, however, requires sustained collaboration, improved planting materials, adoption of climate-smart agricultural practices, effective extension services, and increased participation of young people and women in cocoa production,” he said.

Oyesola, who represented Cocoa producing states, said the event served as a renewed call to action.

“Let us continue to invest in research, support our farmers, encourage youth participation, strengthen extension services, and deepen collaboration among all stakeholders. The future of Nigeria’s cocoa industry depends on the decisions and actions we take today,” he said. (NAN)