Business
NSDC’s Kamar Bakrin Drives Nigeria’s Sugar Self-Sufficiency
NSDC’s Kamar Bakrin says greenfield projects and outgrower programmes are key to Nigeria’s sugar self-sufficiency and economic growth
Kamar Bakrin, Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the National Sugar Development Council (NSDC), has said that Nigeria’s greenfield sugar projects and structured outgrower programmes are critical to achieving domestic sugar self-sufficiency.
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Speaking to Okechukwu Nnodim and select journalists in Abuja, Bakrin highlighted the role of recent Memoranda of Understanding signed with four project promoters.
Each project, he explained, combines large-scale sugarcane cultivation with modern processing facilities and is expected to add roughly 400,000 metric tonnes of sugar annually once fully operational.
The initiatives span the South-West, North-Central, and North-East regions, ensuring broad-based economic benefits, including job creation, infrastructure development, and enterprise growth.
Bakrin noted that GNAL Sugar, promoted by the Lee Group in Taraba State, is progressing steadily.
Taraba’s extensive land availability, reliable water resources, favourable agro-climatic conditions, and government support made it a prime choice for the project.
“We are taking a deliberate, structured approach to ensure long-term viability,” he said.
To support the greenfield projects, NSDC has established dedicated seedcane farms and deployed pre-sprouted bud chip technology via the Nigeria Sugar Institute.
This strategy shortens development cycles, reduces costs, and ensures a consistent supply of quality planting materials.
Bakrin emphasised that the Institute has been repositioned as a national centre of excellence, providing research, training, and technical support to all industry players.
The Sugarcane Outgrower Development Programme (SODP) has also attracted strong interest, Bakrin said.
The programme links farmers directly to licensed processors, offering guaranteed offtake, quality inputs, and technical support.
“This integrated approach reduces risk, boosts productivity, and builds confidence across the sugar value chain,” he added.
Bakrin further highlighted NSDC’s $1bn partnership with SINOMACH as a transformative investment for Nigeria’s sugar industry.
The deal is projected to bring 75,000 hectares under cultivation, produce up to 500,000 metric tonnes of sugar annually, and add 50,000 tonnes-per-day in factory processing capacity.
The initiative is designed to reduce imports, conserve foreign exchange, and create large-scale employment.
“Ambitions of this scale require discipline, sequencing, and rigorous execution,” Bakrin said.
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“We have laid the groundwork, aligned stakeholders, and established institutional coordination to ensure these projects transition decisively from planning to execution.”
The Niger Delta Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Trade, Mines and Agriculture (NDCCITMA) has dismissed allegations that it appropriated the Niger Delta Economic & Investment Summit (NDEIS) brand, insisting it lawfully obtained trademark acceptance for the name and will proceed with its 2026 summit as scheduled.
In a statement issued on September 12, 2026, the chamber described claims by Kunle Nwiwa Junior as “cheap blackmail, misleading, mischievous and a misrepresentation of the facts,” maintaining that it independently developed the summit and followed all required regulatory procedures.
According to NDCCITMA, it applied for and received a Trademark Acceptance Letter for the name Niger Delta Economic & Investment Summit (NDEIS) in August 2025 under File No. NG/TM/O/2025/387284.
The chamber said the chronology of events contradicts allegations that it copied another party’s application, arguing that its trademark acceptance predated the period during which Nwiwa’s own application was reportedly still pending before the relevant authorities.
“Economic Summit” is a generic expression
NDCCITMA further argued that the phrase “Economic Summit” is a generic description widely used for conferences that bring together governments, investors, businesses, development institutions and other stakeholders to discuss investment and economic development.
The chamber maintained that while concepts may be widely used, legal protection only arises from recognised intellectual property rights, including duly registered trademarks and other enforceable proprietary interests.
It therefore rejected suggestions that any individual or organisation has exclusive ownership of the broader concept of an economic summit.
Court grants interim injunction
Addressing reports that the summit had been halted, NDCCITMA said the dispute is already before the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt and that there is no court order restraining the event.
The chamber disclosed that in Suit No. FHC/PHC/CS/57/2026, Justice Stephen Dalyop Pam granted an interim injunction restraining the defendants—Kunle Nwiwa Junior and Keneva Consult Ltd.—from interfering with the planned summit.
According to NDCCITMA, the court also directed the defendants to remove publications, notices, petitions, social media posts and other statements allegedly considered damaging to the chamber’s name, integrity and reputation pending the hearing of its motion for interlocutory injunction.
The matter has been adjourned until September 22, 2026 for further hearing.
Chamber rejects ₦500 million demand claim
NDCCITMA also alleged that it had received a demand from Nwiwa Junior requesting ₦500 million as a condition for abandoning his claims over the summit.
The chamber said the demand was rejected, adding that it subsequently petitioned the Inspector-General of Police over what it described as repeated harassment and threats directed at its officials.
It said the petition sought police intervention, including inviting the complainant for questioning and caution where necessary.
Summit opens September 15
Despite the legal dispute, NDCCITMA reaffirmed that the 2026 Niger Delta Economic & Investment Summit will hold from September 15 to 17, 2026, at the Obi Wali Conference Centre in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
The summit will be held under the theme “Driving Investment, Innovation & Industrial Growth in the Niger Delta” and is expected to bring together policymakers, investors, business leaders, development partners and industry stakeholders to discuss economic transformation across the region.
The chamber said it remains committed to promoting commerce, industry, trade, mining, agriculture and sustainable economic development throughout the Niger Delta while allowing the courts to determine all outstanding legal issues.
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