The Federal Government says it is determined to reverse the current situation where farmers suffer post harvest losses of over 40 per cent in the Cassava value chain.
The Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Sen. Abubakar Atiku Bagudu made this known on Thursday in Nasarawa State during a two-day capacity building workshop for the relevant stakeholders in the implementation of cassava bio-ethanol value chain development project.
He said that a core technical objective of the workshop is the reduction of Post Harvest Losses, which currently accounts for a 40 per cent efficiency leak in the value chain through the deployment of strategic aggregation hubs and rapid processing technologies. He said, “We aim to minimize the window between harvest and processing, thereby preserving starch integrity and ensuring our output meets ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials) specifications for anhydrous ethanol.”
The minister who was represented at the workshop by the Director, Economic Growth Department of the Ministry, Mr. Muhammed Auwal revealed that the government was determined to scale up the production of Fuel Grade Ethanol (FGE) for blending with Premium Motor Spirit (PMS).
The Cassava Bioethanol production, which is aimed at significantly reducing the National Energy Import Bill, will also mitigate the liquidity pressure on the country’s foreign exchange reserves.
The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Dr. Deborah Odoh affirmed the Ministry’s readiness to support all stakeholders in this journey and assured that continued strategic policy coordination, monitoring and evaluation oversight which aligns with national development framework to ensure that investments in this programme delivers value for money, jobs for youths, income for farmers and resilience for the economy is provided.
She therefore urged participants to translate resolutions reached into measurable outputs and sustainable impacts across the North Central.
While speaking earlier, the Director of Economic Growth Department in the Ministry, represented by Mr. Fatai Olaifa, said that cassava is a versatile crop which offers opportunities for farmers, entrepreneurs and investors, he therefore urged participants to fully align themselves as the success of this value chain rests entirely on synergy.
He assured that roles will be clarified within the implementation roadmap, bridge the gap between public sector regulations and private sector efficiency.
In a goodwill message delivered by the Director General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Prof. Mojisola Christiana Adeyeye, represented by Dr. Oyedele Olusegun, he affirmed the Agency’s commitment to the secondary by-products generated from Cassava, he commended the Ministry for the initiative in terms of diversification of the economy and conveyed their commitment to collaboration with the Ministry to ensure success.
While delivering her goodwill message, the Technical Adviser to the Benue State Governor on Food Security and Agriculture, Ms. Ochanya Okoh, reiterated that Benue state is set to harness this opportunity to expand the amount of cassava produced in the state as they are one of the leading states in Cassava produced in the country, she extended the goodwill of the Governor and assured the commitment of Benue state in the implementation of Cassava Bio-Ethanol Value Chain Development Project in the region.
A statement from the Ministry signed by the Director (Info &PR), Julie Osagie-Jacobs, said the workshop was aims at improving the technical capacity of relevant stakeholders in deriving bio-ethanol from Cassava for National Industrial use, export as well as creating a new window for processing of varied products.
It noted that it was convened to operationalize a critical socioeconomic transition under President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda; and also serve as a technical launch pad for the Cassava Bioethanol Value Chain Development Project, a strategic initiative designed to pivot Nigeria from a subsistence agricultural framework toward a high-output, bio-based industrial economy which aids the structural transformation of Nigeria’s biomass potential into industrial grade feedstock.
Participants at the workshop were drawn from the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Raw Materials Research and Development Council, States in the Region, Association of Cassava Producers and Processors amongst others.