Oil palm farmers, processors list demands

The oil palm smallholder farmers, processors and marketers in the country, under the aegis of the National Palm Produce Association of Nigeria (NPPAN), have listed several issues affecting the industry and called on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), federal and state governments to address them urgently in order to restore the lost glory of the industry in the country.

The national president of the association, Ambassador Alphonsus Inyang, called on the National Assembly to, as matter of urgency, enact a law establishing the National Oil Palm Development Council “to regulate, incentivise investment, fund and provide a level-playing field for the industry.”

Ambassador Inyang, who spoke with Daily Trust on Sunday on the outcome of their national executive meeting last week in Akure, the Ondo State capital, highlighted some of the demands agreed on.

At the meeting, he said the NPPAN called on “the CBN to set aside a minimum of N200billion only for funding smallholder oil palm farmers under the Oil Palm Development Initiative (OPDI) of the CBN.

“We request governments of the 24 states with comparative advantage in oil palm production to emulate the government of Ondo State, led by Rotimi Akeredolu, who has allocated and gazetted 10,000 hectares of arable land for the development of oil palm in Ondo State under the Red Gold Initiative Project.

“We also demand the release of 25 per cent of all import duties charged from the importation of oil palm products to the association for backward integration and opening of new oil palm plantations in the country,” he said.