…As FEC Approves Phase 2 Of National Sugar Masterplan
…Okays N580.5m for NDLEA armoured vehicles
…N29.1bn For Road, Salt Devt Projects
MARGARET CHIDERA
The Federal Government has said that the 10-year National Sugar Masterplan is expected to save $350 million annually, as well as create at least 110,000 jobs for the unemployed youths across the country.
This is as the Federal Executive Council (FEC), has approved the second phase of the National Sugar Masterplan.
The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Otunba Niyi Adebayo, disclosed this to State House Correspondents after the weekly FEC meeting, presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
Adebayo said that besides the FOREX savings and job creation targets from the second phase of the masterplan, Nigeria also looks forward to saving $65.8 million on ethanol import, as well as generate 400 megawatts of electricity.
While stating that investments in the national sugar policy was aimed at stimulating self sufficiency in the commodity, Adebayo said no fewer than 15,000 jobs have been created through key players in the industry.
The Minister listed Dangote, BUA, Golden Sugar Mills among key stakeholders jointly owning about 200,000 hectares of sugarcane plantation in the country.
“Today, my Ministry brought a memo seeking Council’s approval for the second phase of the National Sugar Masterplan. In 2012, the first phase of the sugar master plan was approved, lasting from 2012 to 2022.
“The Council approved the extension from 2023 to 2033. That’s for another 10 years and the whole idea of the Sugar Masterplan is for the development of the sugar industry, for self-sufficiency in sugar production.
“The plan has several policy measures or fiscal incentives to stimulate demand and attract private sector investment in the sugar industry. Part of the benefits of the sugar masterplan is the local production of sugar.
“We have under phase one, four major investors, investing in the industry. These are Dangote Sugar, BUA Sugar, Golden Sugar Company which is Flour Mill, Care Africa Group, which bought the Baccita Sugar Mill.
“They have jointly created 15,000 jobs, and they have over almost about 200,000 hectares of land that has been acquired for the production of sugarcane to enable them produce sugar locally. So Council approved phase two of the National Sugar Masterplan,” he said.
Speaking on the targets aimed with the second phase of the masterplan, Adebayo said “the sugar masterplan has witnessed many successes since 2012 when it was first approved. Nigeria has a sugar refining capacity of three million metric tons of raw sugar a year bow. We have embarked on the Backward Integration Project, which has attracted over $3 billion worth of investments from the four major investors that I mentioned earlier.
“Investments have also been made in Greenfield Sugar Projects, that is smaller projects all across the country. In Jigawa, Kogi, Zamfara, Oyo and Sokoto states. We’ve also established the National Sugar Institute in Ilorin.
“Those are some of the achievements that we have had over the past 10 years and phase two of the Sugar Masterplan that has just been approved, we’re hoping that as a result of this phase two, we will be able to create 110,000 jobs from it.
“We are hopeful that Nigeria will be able to produce 1.7 to 1.8 million metric tons of sugar a year, thus eliminating the $350 million that we spend on the importation of raw sugar.
“We’re hoping to produce 161 million litres of ethanol annually, which will thus eliminate $65.8 million of ethanol imports annually. We’re hoping to generate 400 megawatts of electricity and we’re hoping to produce 1.6 million tons of animal feed annually,” he said.
Speaking on mechanisms built to protect the flow of the masterplan, he said “we have a two-tier monitoring and evaluation framework in place to stop any attempts to destroy the sugar masterplan. We have what we call the Sugar Roadmap Implementation Committee (SURMIC) and this is a multi-agency committee, charged with supervision of the National Sugar Masterplan.
“We also have another committee called the Sugar Industry Monitoring Group (SIMOG), this is composed of the chief executives of all the local sugar manufacturing companies. This is like a peer review committee. We have these committees in place to see to it that there is no distortion of the sugar master plan.
“The three million tons capacity we have is based on refining raw sugar. At the moment, most of the sugar we refine is imported raw sugar, phase two is leading us to self-sufficiency in producing raw sugar in Nigeria,” he said.
Also, the Federal Executive Council, has approved the purchase of four armoured vehicles at the cost of N580.5 million for the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).
Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, who disclosed this, explained that the approval became important, considering NDLEA’s recent success stories and the possibility of targeted attacks on its personnel.
It would be recalled that the agency was in the news recently when it seized cocaine with an estimated market value of about $278 million, which in Naira value translates to about N194billion naira.
Council also reviewed the successes recorded by the agency between January and July 2022, under the leadership of its current Chairman, Brigadier-General Buba Marwa (Retd), during which period it had arrested over 18,940 suspects, including securing 2,904 convictions from the courts, a development that has built up the risk of its personnel being targets of reprisal attacks by affected criminal rings.
Speaking to correspondents after the meeting, Malami said “today, a memo was presented by the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation. Specifically, the Federal Ministry of Justice. The memo is related to a parastatal under the supervision of the Office of the Attorney General, which is the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).
“The purpose of the memo was to seek the approval of Council for the award of contract for the supply of 4 customised armoured security vehicles or 14 seater model vehicle for the NDLEA in favour of Devcom Integrity Services Limited and the contract sum of N580,500,000 only, inclusive of the 7.5 Value Added Tax.
“It has a delivery period of 16 weeks. It is common knowledge to all that in recent times the NDLEA has been repositioned and arising from the support in terms of capacity building hardware and associated things, they have recorded an extra ordinary unprecedented success.
“Of recent and still in our memory is a seizure of cocaine having a market value of about $278 million, which in Nigeria Naira translates to about N194 billion naira and in terms of volume is about 1.8 tonnes. So, with all these successes recorded, it is only logical that the criminals and criminal syndicate are now devising means, inclusive of attacks on the personnel of the NDLEA.
“So, it is with that in mind that a memo was presented to FEC seeking approval of the Council for the procurement of armoured vehicles for the agency.
“The memo was taken and at the end of the day, it was approved, contract for the procurement of 14-seater armoured personnel vehicles which was approved. The delivery period for the vehicles to the NDLEA is 16 weeks from today. And the company that has been granted the contract is Devcom Integrated Services Limited.
“We are happy with the successes being recorded by NDLEA for the purpose of further information. I think it is relevant to state that NDLEA has succeeded in many ways.
“Between January and July, 2022, it has succeeded in arresting over 18,940 suspects. They have equally secured 2,904 convictions within the period, which has led in effect to the unprecedented reprisal attacks on officers. So, with the progress being recorded, it becomes necessary that the agency be supported with armored vehicles and Council has considered and indeed approved accordingly,” the Minister said.
Speaking about what the administration has done differently to achieve the much successes in the fight against illicit drugs and substance trade and abuse, the Minister pointed out that the Buhari administration had show much more political will to achieve success in the war.
Also, the Federal Executive Council (FEC), approved a total of N29,083,577,000 for projects in the Ministry of Works and Housing, as well as that of Mines and Steel Development.
Disclosing details of the approval granted the Ministry of Works and Housing, the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said N27,233,577,000 billion was approved for the rehabilitation of the 30Km Idoani-Otuo Road.
“This is on behalf of the Minister of Works and Housing, who presented a memo for the approval of the award of contract for the rehabilitation of the 30 kilometre Idoani-Otuo Road, which links Ondo and Edo states and close to Kogi State.
“The contract is for the sum of N27,233,577,000 billion and awarded to Mother Cat Limited and has a completion period of 36 months,” Mohammed, who spoke on behalf of the Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fasola, said.
Meanwhile, FEC has approved a N1.85 billion contract for the construction of about 27 kilometers of retaining wall to contain the loss of raw salt from the salt lakes in Ebonyi State, thereby saving around $88 million spent annually on salt importation.
According to the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Olamilekan Adegbite, the project, which is being funded directly from the Presidency, will not only save the country millions of dollars in foreign exchange, but also close local salt demand gap, substantially.
Explaining why the project is necessary, Adegbite said “nobody is producing salt from mining. We have a few companies that are doing edible salts, but the salts that you produce from mining has a wide range of applications, industrial salts. Salt is used in industry for so many things. It can also be prepared to be edible. Sea salts are actually better health-wise than other kinds of salts.
“We have that resource there in Ebonyi State, their salt lakes, the salt oozes from under and it comes there when the water dries out. But when the rain comes, it washes the salt out, which is why we are putting this restraining wall now, so the salt cannot go out, we can mine it.
“This will be the first of its kind in Nigeria, it will, of course, replace all the money we spend, about $88 million annually, to important such sault,” he explained.
Asked when local mining of salt in Ebonyi will commence, he said “as part of the mining project, you have to do an environmental impact analysis before you start any mining project. It was that report that told us that we need to do this retaining wall, for us to be able to mine it. So, this retaining wall that has been approved today, the contractor has promised to deliver in six months. If he (the contractor) finishes the job, then we can go ahead and start the mining.”
