FG targets EU investment in one-million-hectare cocoa expansion plan

The federal government will present Nigeria’s one-million-hectare tree crops expansion programme to European cocoa industry leaders and investors in Brussels to attract investment and strengthen market access.

The plan is contained in a joint press statement issued by the Agribusiness and Productivity Enhancement Project Management Office (AgPE PMO), in the Office of the Vice-President, and the EU-Nigeria Agribusiness Platform (EUNAP) on Thursday in Abuja.

The programme will be presented at the Nigeria/West Africa Cocoa Origins-EU Industry Match-Making Forum, scheduled to hold on the sidelines of the Nigeria-Belgium-Luxembourg Business Forum. Kingsley Uzoma, senior special assistant to the president on agribusiness, said Nigeria would present a structured expansion plan backed by traceability and measures to prevent deforestation.

“Nigeria is presenting European industry with a plan, not a promise,” he said. Mr Uzoma said the programme would ensure that new tree crop plantations were planned, mapped and traceable from the first seedling, strengthening Nigeria’s position as a responsible cocoa-producing country.

He said the presentation came as European buyers sought reliable cocoa sources and prepared to implement the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR).

According to him, the programme will address buyers’ concerns about the location of new plantations, traceability and measures to prevent forest loss. Mr Uzoma said Nigeria had more than 350,000 cocoa-farming families cultivating over 1.4 million hectares. He said the expansion programme would build on the existing production base while promoting deforestation-free cultivation and full traceability.

He added that European investors would be invited to participate through long-term offtake agreements, co-investment in processing and partnerships between regions. Mr Uzoma said the AgPE PMO would engage relevant federal ministries, departments and agencies, as well as cocoa-producing states, to coordinate Nigeria’s participation in the forum.

He added that the parties had agreed on terms of reference for sustained collaboration in policy engagement, mobilisation of grants and development resources, and commercialisation of cocoa and other agricultural value chains.

Roland Oroh, founder and director of Agribusiness Register and project director of EUNAP, said European industry players wanted reliable supply, consistent quality and verifiable evidence of sustainable production.

He said the senior special assistant to the president’s participation in the forum’s plenary session would demonstrate high-level government commitment to the initiative.

Mr Oroh said the forum would bring together European cocoa grinders, chocolate manufacturers and traders with vetted exporters, processors and cooperative federations from Nigeria, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire. He said the programme would feature pre-arranged business-to-business meetings, finance and regional partnership sessions, and an investment showcase featuring four flagship Nigerian projects. According to him, the event will be held in a hybrid format, with virtual participation facilitated through EUNAP’s deal room. NAN