In a bold call to action, the Executive Secretary of the National Sugar Development Council (NSDC), Mr. Kamar Bakrin, has urged Nigerian farmers and private sector players to move beyond sidelines and into the sweet spot of national development of local sugar production with an over $2 billion market .
Speaking in Abuja while receiving a delegation from the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Bakrin declared that Nigeria stands on the brink of a sugar revolution, one that promises not just self-sufficiency, but regional dominance in a $10 billion market of sugar and its by-products.
“This is not just a profitable venture. It is a defining moment for Nigeria’s agro-industrial future,” he said. “The market is hungry, the policy environment is right, and the time to act is now.”
With Nigeria’s sugar market valued at over $2 billion and Africa’s deficit projected to hit 13 million metric tons by 2030, the NSDC boss said the country must transition from chronic importer to powerhouse producer, leveraging its vast land, favorable climate, and strategic positioning under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
To support this vision, Bakrin revealed that the Council has unlocked a 150,000-hectare land bank across secure and climate-suited regions, offering ready ground for sugarcane cultivation and industrial processing.
“These aren’t just empty plots. They’re high-value assets located near water sources, within community-supported zones, and ready to be transformed into economic goldmines,” he added.
He further unveiled the Council’s Commercial Outgrower Initiative, which seeks to place 50,000 hectares under cultivation and recruit capable commercial farmers to manage plots between 50 to 200 hectares especially around sugar estates in Numan, Bacita, Sunti, and Lafiagi.
But it’s not just land on the table. NSDC, under the Nigeria Sugar Master Plan II (NSMP II), is offering a full suite of incentives, from access to the Nigeria Sugar Industry Development Fund (NSIDF) and tax holidays, to infrastructure credits, land lease facilitation, mechanization support, and guaranteed offtake agreements with sugar processors.
“We are not making empty invitations,” Bakrin emphasized. “We are de-risking investment, fast-tracking productivity, and backing it all with capital, expertise, and policy muscle.”
He also spotlighted the wealth hidden in sugarcane by-products—ethanol, animal feed, biogas, bioelectricity, bioplastics describing them as untapped goldmines for savvy investors looking to diversify and scale sustainably.
Despite having 19 sugar-producing countries, Africa remains a net importer. But with AfCFTA reducing trade barriers, Bakrin said Nigerian producers have a rare window to lead the continent.
“With policy backing, preferential access, and the right vision, Nigeria can become Africa’s cost leader in sugar,” he stated.
On his part, AFAN President, Dr. Faruk Rabiu Mudi, welcomed the call and pledged to mobilize the association’s members into the sugar value chain.
He acknowledged the country’s troubling sugar production gap and agreed that closing it is a national imperative.
“NSDC cannot do this alone,” Mudi said. “But with the right collaboration, we can turn Nigeria’s sugar story from deficit to dominance.”
