Lagos partners FAO to rehabilitate Coconut Belt

The Lagos State government in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has begun the rehabilitation of its coconut belt with a view to ensuring the sustainable production of coconut seedlings for the cultivation of no fewer than ten million coconut trees by 2014.

State commissioner for agriculture, Abisola Olusanya disclosed this last weekend, explained that the collaboration will also ensure the rehabilitation of coconut grooves and the creation of over 500,000 job opportunities and wealth through training, capacity building and empowerment of youths and women in the state in the coconut value chain.

According to her, coconut is one of the major cash crops in Lagos, as the state produces over 80 percent of the country’s annual production of 285,200 metric tons, earning it the 19th position in the world.

The commissioner added that despite the efforts of the state government in harnessing the full potentials of the tree crop, the state has only been able to access 20 percent of its potentials through rehabilitation and production efforts in upstream and processing, utilisation and commercialisation downstream while only meeting about 30 percent of the local demand.

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“Coconut is one of the major cash crops in Lagos State with the State producing over 80 percent of the country’s annual production of 285,200 metric tons (MT). The effort of the State in this regard has earned 19th spot on the World Coconut producing countries.

“However, despite the efforts of the State Government through the Lagos State Coconut Development Authority in harnessing the full potentials of the tree crop, the state has only been able to access 20 percent of its potentials through rehabilitation and production efforts upstream and processing, utilisation and commercialisation downstream while only meeting about 30 percent of the local demand.

“It is pertinent to note that the strategic 5-year Agricultural Road Map of the present administration of having 10,000,000 productive Coconut Trees in Lagos State under the Coconut Value Chain will provide over 80 husked nuts per tree to a total of over 800,000,000 husked nuts per annum currently valued at an average of N100 per nut with an economic value of over N76 billion per annum which could be tripled to a tune of N240 billion worth of transaction volume with value-added annually. These figures can only be achieved if the right technical and financial supports are provided.

“It is in the light of this that the state government is collaborating with Food and Agriculture Organisation to provide technical support in the development of the coconut value chain through unilateral trust fund,” Olusanya said.