Kogi State has emerged as the leading producer of cashew nuts in the country, according to the state government.
The Commissioner for Information and Communications, Kingsley Fanwo, on Friday disclosed this to journalists in Lokoja.
He attributes this achievement to the state’s agricultural policies that aim to empower farmers with improved seedlings, mechanization, and agrochemicals, as well as creating an enabling environment for private sector investment in cashew production.
Fanwo also revealed that Kogi State is working towards becoming the cashew hub of Africa.
He said, “Today, Kogi State is the biggest producer of cashew in Nigeria because of our sound agricultural policies geared towards empowering farmers with improved seedlings, mechanisation, and agrochemicals as well as creating an enabling environment for the private sector to invest in cashew production.
“Kogi has retained this position for many years and our ambition is to push Nigeria’s production level above that of Ivory Coast, which is the leading cashew producer in the world.
“The administration of Yahaya Bello is scaling up the gear to improve the value chain in cashew production in the state. We can only get value for money when we can add some value to our cashew before selling to the major buyers.”
