‘Increase in cashew export can earn Nigeria $2.7b’

National President, National Cashew Association of Nigeria (NCAN), Ojo Ajanaku has said Nigeria can earn $2.7b from exporting cashew nuts if the country increased its export by two million tonnes.

Ajanaku said this in an interview with The Nation while dismissing a report of a new leadership to pilot the affairs of the association.

According to him, Nigeria can produce more cashew and export it to earn more foreign exchange.

He said: “If we succeed in getting two million tonnes of cashew; let us assume that all the cashew is exported in the raw nut, at the current price, we will be having about $2.7b into the Nigeria coffers.

“We believe that without the production being increased we might not be able to meet the target we have set. By 2030, we should be producing about 2 million tonnes of cashew. Some people say we are too ambitious but if Ivory Coast can produce 1.2m metric tonnes of cashew in less than five years, we can do better putting into our numbers and landmass advantage.

“We have been working with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to see how we can get free seedlings for our people.

We are also in talk with development partners who are interested in increasing production in Nigeria and to see how NCAN can have nurseries in all the state chapters where cashew is being produced to make it closer to farmers who distribute it freely so that they can farm this cashew and produce more.”

He said the association was in talks with the Edo State government to see how it can partner to increase cashew production.

Ajanaku also urged state governments to provide its members with free seedlings to help increase production.

“Let us support farmers that are into cashew farming with inputs. Let us give them seedlings that can encourage them to go into the production of cashew.


“We are not benefiting from the Anchor Borrowers Programme because cashew is taken as a tree crop. But the Federal Government can bring cashew on board, let our members benefit from the anchor borrower programme it will help in boosting production.

Speaking on the problems facing the sector, he said: “There is no policy in the sector and this is not discouraging investors to come into the sector. We want the government to look critically in this area.”