ALL AGRI #Africa Agri Updates

The National Sugar Development Council is urging the All Farmers Association of Nigeria and investors to seize opportunities in Nigeria’s sugar sector, with Executive Secretary Kamar Bakrin highlighting a market valued at over $2 billion.‎Addressing the farmers who paid him a courtesy call in his office, Bakrin called on stakeholders to join the national effort to reduce the country’s overdependence on imported raw sugar and its by-products.

“Rice is very popular because it is easy to cook,” he said. “It used to seem like a luxury food to many consumers, compared with maize and millet. If you go to Sierra Leone, they used to consume a lot of roots and tubers etc, but people now associate those foods with poverty so they prefer rice.”Sali Atanja Ndindeng heads the rice sector development programme, which develops new varieties in conjunction with market trends and analyses samples received from partner institutions in member countries to help identify good grain quality.

Some imported products could become cheaper in the short term as US tariffs take effect and as countries grapple with surplus in products, diversification efforts and competition. South Africa was slapped with a 30% tariff on local goods, which officially took effect on 7 August. The country said it does not plan to retaliate against Washington, but is offering a revised trade deal, which would be mutually beneficial to both nations. South Africa’s trade partners, including China, are also enduring damaging tariffs from the US, while both Brazil and India are being hit with 50% tariffs. Vietnam and Japan are facing a 20% and 15% tariff, respectively.