Revitalizing the sugar sector crucial in tackling joblessness and instability, says NSDC chief

Mr. Kamar Bakrin, the Executive Secretary/CEO of the National Sugar Development Council, NSDC, emphasized that fostering Nigeria's sugar industry could have a profound impact on unemployment, insecurity, and rural community underdevelopment by generating substantial employment opportunities and drawing investments to rural areas.

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This statement was made during a strategic meeting between the NSDC and the Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, held at the Customs Headquarters in Abuja, where Bakrin addressed the Comptroller-General of Customs, Mr. Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, and other senior officials.

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A fully developed sugar sector, according to Bakrin, could divert the over $1 billion spent annually on sugar imports into domestic investments, job creation, and industrial growth, thereby transforming the economy.

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The sugar industry, he noted, has the potential to create approximately 250,000 direct jobs and an additional 750,000 indirect jobs across the sugar value chain in around 12 states, with the majority of these being rural jobs.

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Bakrin highlighted the benefits of these rural jobs, stating that they would help to alleviate unrest and security challenges by providing opportunities for young people in rural areas.

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The energy potential of sugar estates was also underscored by Bakrin, who explained that modern sugar projects are capable of generating their own electricity independently of the national grid and can contribute excess power to the country.

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A sugar estate, he said, consumes only about 50 percent of the energy it produces, with the remaining power available to be injected into the national grid, equivalent to around 400 megawatts, enough to power a small modern city.

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Nigeria, Bakrin observed, has over one million hectares of land suitable for sugar cultivation, and only about 200,000 hectares would be required for the country to achieve sugar self-sufficiency.

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In response, the Comptroller-General of Customs, Adeniyi, assured the NSDC of the Service's support for the sugar sector transformation agenda, pledging to work with the council to drive growth in the industry.