Anambra State government has restated its commitment to boosting palm oil production, as the Commissioner for Agriculture, Professor Forster Ihejiofor, explained that the administration of Governor Chukwuma Soludo is ready to invest more in the sector for greater economic returns. Speaking at the unveiling of a new agro initiative, the commissioner said the State has already distributed 220 million palm seedlings to more than 180,000 households across Anambra in the last two years. He described this effort as part of Governor Soludo’s bold plan to revive and expand the palm economy.
Ihejiofor also announced the government’s intention to work closely with the National Palm Produce Association of Nigeria (NPPAN) and Alpha Palm City Estate Development Limited to fully implement the One Family, 20 Palms programme in the State. This disclosure was made during the launch of the project by Alpha Palm City Estate Development Limited and the formal inauguration of the Anambra State chapter of NPPAN.
Alpha Palm City Estate Development Limited is a private agro-real-estate company engaged in acquiring estates, planting, and nurturing high-yielding palm nurseries and seedlings for sale to agricultural investors. Declaring the event open, the commissioner expressed concern over Nigeria’s current dependence on palm oil importation. He said Nigeria, despite being the original source of the palm nuts taken to Malaysia decades ago, now imports palm oil worth five hundred million dollars from that same country annually. He described this situation as troubling and urged stronger efforts to rebuild the sector locally.
The commissioner also shared insights from his 2022 visit to Malaysia. He explained that palm trees in Malaysia have been classified as a national economic plant, and that anyone who tampers with them without government approval faces prosecution. According to him, Malaysia has ensured that every part of the palm tree has value, with no by-product allowed to go to waste. He noted that these policies have made palm plantations a major pillar of the Malaysian economy and suggested that similar models could help transform both the Anambra and Nigerian economies. He added that Governor Soludo has shown strong support for the sector by encouraging serious investors to organise themselves into cooperatives, acquire processing machines, and follow standard procedures that will guarantee high returns.
He further argued that more than 80 percent of products sold in a typical Nigerian supermarket contain palm oil or kernel by-products, showing how important the industry remains to national development.
In her remarks, the Vice Chairman of Alpha Palm City Estate Development Limited, Mrs Gloria Aniemeka, said the company initiated the new project and found NPPAN to be the right partner to achieve the vision, especially with the State government expected to provide a supportive environment. She explained that the goal of the initiative is to plant at least twenty million palm trees soon across Anambra. She encouraged individuals and groups to invest in the agro estate development, assuring them that land is available for palm oil ventures within the estate.
Aniemeka stated that Alpha Palm City Estate Development Limited has already planted fast-growing and high-quality nursery palm species that can be nurtured for investors before ownership is transferred. She urged both local and international investors to take advantage of the opportunity and participate in the One Family, Twenty Palms promotion. She added that payment plans are available in phases and instalments to make participation easier.
Also speaking, the National Vice President (South East) of NPPAN, Dr Lynda Onubogu, inaugurated the newly elected Anambra State executive led by Mrs Ifeyinwa Onweluzo. She said palm produce has long been the economic backbone of the Eastern region until it was neglected. She described the inauguration as a call to action to restore the lost glory of the industry, beginning with Anambra State.
Earlier, the National Secretary of NPPAN, Kayode Olatola, explained that the association has existed since 1995 and that palm trees grow in commercial quantities in 29 states across Nigeria. He noted that Anambra is well-positioned to make the most of the One Family, 20 Palms initiative because of the limited land space in the South-East, making structured palm estate development even more important.
