By Gabriel Ewepu

ABUJA – THE Federal Government, Monday, vowed to galvanize the nation’s oil palm industry to recover its lost global number one position under the ‘Renewed Hope’ Agenda.

The resolve was made by the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abdullahi Aliyu, in a remark during a courtesy visit by the Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, Mr Pahala Nugraha Mansury, along with a delegation including the Indonesian Ambassador to Nigeria, Dr Usra Harahap.

Aliyu commended the Government of Indonesia to have strong confidence in Nigeria, particularly on the nation’s oil palm industry, which he said there are a lot for both countries to achieve in the oil palm subsector of the economy based on the huge and amazing potential the subsector based on the vast land and the industry players.

He also said the Tinubu-led administration is poised and committed with the ‘Renewed Hope’ Agenda to ensure agriculture is on the driver’s seat of the Nigerian economy based on the sustainable policies he is putting in place to ensure the sector is no more at the background, therefore, he has made a top priority agenda.

Also present during the visit was the National President, National Oil Palm Produce Association of Nigeria, NPPAN, Dr Alphonsus Inyang; Patron, NNPAN and Andoma of Doma, Dr Ahmadu Aliyu; Former Speaker, House of Representatives, NNPAN, Rt Hon Yakubu Dogara, represented by Hon Jagaba Adams; Executive Secretary, Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria, ARCN, Prof Garba Sharubutu; Managing Director, Commodities Development Initiative, Roland Oroh; Executive Members of NNPAN; and other stakeholders

He said: “I want to assure you that for us at the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security we are definitely interested in the oil palm industry or system because of its very huge potential for export.

“The growth strategy for Nigeria recognizes that as long as we are going to be talking about import substitution, I think the best solution is to have export driven strategy, and I think working together like you have indicated, we have big space we can accommodate investors who are ready to work with our own investors and farmers so that we can take the oil palm as a commodity to the next level of economic growth and development, the mystery behind oil palm in Nigeria we can achieve that and we can do it.

“And I want to tell you very rightly that we are going to work henceforth to see what we can do to turn things around.

“Ordinarily, it is not going to be an accident to see Nigeria the world leader of oil palm because we are the home of oil palm. I sincerely believe what the oil palm can do is so enormous and huge, and we are going to work with the association.”

Earlier, the Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, Mr Pahala Nugraha Mansury, in a remark, acknowledged how important Nigeria is to Indonesia economy in terms of export of cocoa beans, fertilizers and others.

Mansury also said Indonesia is ready to work with Nigeria in oil palm value chain development based on Indonesia’s number one position in oil palm production in the world, which it produces 50 million metric tonnes annually, and domestically consume 12 million metric tonnes, while 38 million metric tonnes of oil palm is exported.

“Now, we believe that Nigeria has the potential to be able to do very similar things with Indonesia. We see a lot of similarities between Indonesia and Nigeria in terms of the soil, weather and farmers.

“There about 16 million smallholder farmers related to oil palm production in Indonesia, and most of them are no longer living below the poverty-line, and we have been able to increase their income.

“Nigeria is our most significant economic partner in Sub Saharan Africa in terms of trade, investment, as well as the economic cooperation, and of course one of the sectors we are trying to be of better economic cooperation between Indonesia and Nigeria is obviously in the area of food security and agriculture, and we want to review and how are we going to be able to develop a better much better cooperation between Indonesia and Nigeria, particularly in the area of agriculture.

“Indonesia is one of the largest exporters of edible oil to Nigeria, and Nigeria is the biggest exporter to Indonesia of Cocoa beans as far as fertilizers”, he said.

Also, the National President, NNPAN, Dr Alphonsus Inyang, said, “Indonesia a country with largest number of islands in the world, is still driving the oil palm industry, Nigeria stands better in terms of our landscape and ecology is in a better position to do as much as you.

“With the support we are going to give you as a country under Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries (CPOPC) and global alliance to tackle the negative news coming from the buying and consumer nations, we are going to work with CPOPC.”

He also called on the government to support the oil palm industry with seeds, strong policies to protect farmers, and other incentives.