Tinubu’s Reforms Pave Way for Nigeria’s Attainment of 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.
Mr. 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.
“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,” the NSDC boss said.
Mr. Bakrin urged participants to see sugar and beverages as one value chain, “from the cane field to the bottle.” The beverage industry is the largest industrial consumer of sugar in Nigeria, he noted, so what strengthens one strengthens the other.
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. Mr. Bakrin said reaching it would save about US$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.
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“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. Sugarcane is also a source of fuel ethanol, bio-electricity and biodegradable packaging, which links to the circular-economy agenda this session is discussing,” he said.
He added that investors are responding: “Brownfield investors have committed to delivering 1.22 million metric tonnes a year by 2030, two years ahead of the NSMP’s 2032 timeline. A pipeline of greenfield projects is set to add 830,000 metric tonnes a year by 2030.”
Mr. Bakrin said investor confidence is very high but sustaining it depends on policy consistency.
“A sugar estate takes at least four years from land clearing to full production, with capital committed long before the first tonne is sold. Investors therefore look for stable demand and a predictable policy environment,” he told the audience.
He stressed that the Council fully shares the Government’s objectives, including the public-health goal of tackling non-communicable diseases. “We are not asking anyone to choose between health and industry,” he said.
“An investor making that decision looks at two things: will there be stable demand for this sugar, and will the policy environment be predictable over the life of the investment. So, every fiscal and regulatory decision that touches this value chain also sends a signal to the investors we are working hard to attract, Mr. Bakrin added.
He proposed that where a measure affects the sugar and beverage value chain, its impact on jobs, investment and the NSMP should be assessed before it is finalised, and that it should then be introduced with a reasonable transition period, through the established mechanisms.
Mr. Bakrin said coherence is very important, adding that beverage manufacturers can anchor demand for Nigerian-grown sugar through local offtake commitments, support for outgrower farmers, market data and investment in the Backward Integration Program (BIP).
“When Government protects the conditions for demand, and industry commits to local supply, the whole value chain grows, and the jobs stay in Nigeria,” he said.
He recommended that the Nigeria Industrial Policy Sectoral Competitiveness and Growth Initiative (NSCGI) adopt alignment with the Sugar Master Plan as one of its measures of success.
“When the sugar sector and the beverage sector grow together, Nigeria wins: on jobs, on foreign exchange, and on rural prosperity,” he concluded.
By PRNigeria
