Cashew generated $253 million (about N50.4billion) in foreign exchange for the nation last year, the President, National Cashew Association of Nigeria (NCAN), Tola Faseru, has said.
Faseru, who spoke yesterday during the cashew planting season flag-off and roll out of Cashew Expansion Programme of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture at Ife, Osun State, said the nation produces about 160,000 metric tonnes of cashew yearly.
He said the target is to move production to 500,000 tonnes by 2020, and also be able to develop a processing capacity of 70 per cent which is about 350,000 metric tonnes, saying Nigeria is the sixth largest cashew producer in the world after Ivory Coast, India, Vietnam, Tanzania and Guinea Bissau.
He said cashew is currently grown in over 21 states of the federation, including Ebonyi, Kogi, Kwara, Enugu, Anambra, Imo, Abia, Cross River, Edo, Nassarawa, Benue, Taraba, Ogun, Oyo, Osun , Ondo, Ekiti, Delta, Akwa Ibom , FCT and Niger, adding that It can be grown in all parts of the country.
He said cashew is one of the 13 Non-oil Strategic Export Products (NSEPs), to be used to diversify the economy away from oil under the Nigerian Industrial Revolution Plan of the Federal Ministry of Trade and Investment.
He expressed satisfaction with the promptness of implementation of the first phase of the four-year cashew development road map which is to scale up its production.
The programme, he said, is a great display of commitment by Chief Audu Ogbeh to the cashew ndustry.
He said: “The careful choice of high yielding, early maturing and disease-resistant Brazilian jumbo and Indian variety cashew planting materials sends a strong signal to cashew stakeholders both locally and internationally that the cashew landscape in Nigeria is gradually evolving and the industry is now better positioned to become number one in the world.
He expressed hope that the varieties will bring higher quality of nuts, increased yield per hectare, better pricing of cashew internationally, and lead to increased job creation and increased nuts availability for processing.
He commended the efforts of the Federal Government through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigerian Export Import Bank (NEXIM) for the N550 billion export stimulating funds, pleading that the funds be allowed to be accessed on the basis of commodity by commodity to allow for effectiveness, better access for the genuine players in the value chain and indeed for better monitoring and sectoral impact assessment.
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