The Federal Government is to collaborate with the private sector to establish 18 cassava processing industries with machines that can process 240 tons of cassava per day.
Olusegun Adewunmi, president, Nigeria Cassava Growers Association (NCGA), dropped the hint in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Thursday.
Adewunmi said this was in line with the agricultural transformation agenda of President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration, pointing out that the processing industries would create market for cassava.
It would be recalled that the objective of the agenda was to generate employment and transform the country into a leading player in global food markets to grow wealth for millions of farmers.
The agenda was designed to make the agricultural sector a business project to promote private investment in agriculture.
It will also execute integrated projects through value chain processes, generate employment, and transform Nigeria into a net exporter of agricultural commodities.
Adewunmi said that the cassava growers would have to work really hard to be able to meet the requirement of the processing industries, especially as the country had started exporting cassava grits and chips to China.
