Nigeria’s sugar industry has the potential to create massive employment opportunities, improve rural development, and help tackle insecurity if properly developed, according to the National Sugar Development Council (NSDC).
The Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the NSDC, Kamar Bakrin, made this known during a strategic meeting with the Nigeria Customs Service in Abuja. The meeting focused on strengthening cooperation between both agencies and discussing the implementation of the National Sugar Master Plan II (NSMP II).
Speaking during the meeting, Bakrin explained that building a fully integrated sugar industry would help Nigeria reduce its dependence on imported sugar while creating jobs and boosting industrial growth across rural communities.
According to him, Nigeria currently spends more than one billion dollars yearly on sugar imports. He said developing local sugar production would help keep that money within the country and channel it into investments, employment, and economic expansion.
Bakrin noted that the sugar sector could create about 250,000 direct jobs and another 750,000 indirect jobs across the sugar value chain. He added that most of these opportunities would be located in rural areas across about 12 states, helping to reduce migration to urban centres.
He stressed that rural employment is important because it gives young people productive opportunities and reduces the risk of social unrest and criminal activities.
According to him, communities hosting large sugar projects often experience better economic stability because the projects provide jobs, business opportunities, and infrastructure development.
Bakrin also revealed that modern sugar estates are not designed only for sugar production. He explained that they are built to generate electricity as well, making them largely energy self-sufficient.
He said a standard sugar estate could generate as much as 400 megawatts of electricity, while using only about half of the power produced. The remaining electricity, he explained, could be supplied to the national grid to support Nigeria’s power needs.
Beyond employment and energy generation, Bakrin said the sugar industry could support wider economic diversification efforts. He disclosed that Nigeria has over one million hectares of suitable farmland that can be used for sugar cultivation and agro-industrial development.
He, however, warned that achieving these goals would require strong government support, consistent policies, transparent incentives for investors, and close cooperation among key institutions.
Responding during the meeting, the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, expressed support for the transformation of the sugar sector.
Adeniyi described the industry as important to Nigeria’s economic priorities, especially in the areas of job creation, rural development, security improvement, and energy supply.
Both the NSDC and the Customs Service agreed to strengthen collaboration in several areas, including market monitoring, enforcement of import quotas, transparency in import data, anti-smuggling operations, and the implementation of incentives aimed at supporting local sugar production.
The partnership is expected to help improve the sustainability and long-term growth of Nigeria’s sugar industry while supporting the country’s broader economic development goals.
