The Nigeria-Malaysia Business Council, Plantation Owners Forum of Nigeria (POFON) and Trade Commission of Malaysia in Lagos and other industry stakeholders, have called for strategic production partnership between Nigeria and Malaysia.
This call was made in Lagos at a forum organized by the Nigeria-Malaysia Business Council, with the theme, ‘Perspectives to Malaysia-Nigeria Palm Oil Relations, Challenges and Concerns, Potential and Opportunities, Closing the gaps and Confidence building and Way Forward.’
Malaysia’s palm oil production from 2015 to 2020 respectively included 17,700,000 metric tonnes (MTs); 18,858,000MTs; 19,683,000MTs; 20,800,000MTs; 19,255,000MTs and 17,854,000MTs while Nigeria’s production, according to Oil World for the period are 940,000MTs; 960,000MTs; 1,040,000MTs; 1,130,000MTs; 1,220,000MTs and 1,280,000MTs respectively.
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Meanwhile, Nigeria’s oil palm consumption from 2015 to 2020 were 2,517,000 metric tonnes; 2,480,000MTs; 2,490,000MTs; 2,523,000MTs; 2,573,000MTs and 2,591,000MTs with the production deficit for Nigeria stands at about 1,311,000MTs.
Mr Fatai Afolabi, the Advisor to Plantation Owners Forum of Nigeria (POFON) at the event disclosed that Malaysia has what it takes to be a dependable ally with Nigeria in oil palm industry being a country with the cultivation of over 6,000,000 hectares of improved oil palm seedlings and techniques with well-established oil palm industry.
He explained that unlike Malaysia, Nigeria has just a little over 600,000 hectares under improved oil palm planting, with a less-established oil palm industry, adding that small-scale farmers owned 40 per cent of all palm oil plantations in Malaysia and owned over 70 per cent in Nigeria.
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The Trade Commissioner of Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation, Lagos office, Mohd Khairy Maidin, noted that the dialogue session is the first approach to create partnership from upstream to downstream sectors in palm oil industry of the two countries.
He stated that Malaysia as the powerhouse of palm oil industry in the world with world-class expertise and technologies, has all it take to partner Nigeria because he discovered the potential of Nigeria from 2016 to not just become a trade partner but also a hub for Malaysian products and services in Africa.
