Nigeria’s worsening unemployment crisis, rising rural insecurity, and persistent pressure on foreign exchange may find an unlikely solution in one commodity: sugar.
The Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the National Sugar Development Council (NSDC), Kamar Bakrin, says a fully industrialised sugar sector could become one of the country’s most transformative economic tools capable of creating up to one million jobs, generating electricity, stimulating rural development, and reducing the social conditions fuelling insecurity across parts of the country.
Speaking during a strategic engagement between the NSDC and the Nigeria Customs Service at the customs headquarters in Abuja, Bakrin declared that the sugar sector holds the potential to convert Nigeria’s annual sugar import bill of over one billion dollars into local investments, employment opportunities, and industrial expansion.
“If Nigeria succeeds in developing a proper sugar sector, one of the things we would do is convert an annual outflow of over one billion dollars into jobs, security, and industrialisation,” he said.
According to him, the industry can directly employ about 250,000 Nigerians while creating another 750,000 indirect jobs across the sugar value chain, largely in rural communities spread across at least 12 states.
Unlike many sectors concentrated in urban centres, Bakrin stressed that sugar development would deliberately shift economic activity to underserved rural areas where unemployment, poverty, and insecurity remain deeply entrenched.
“These are rural jobs, not city jobs,” he stated.
Sugar As A Security Strategy
Beyond economics, the NSDC boss framed sugar development as a national security intervention, arguing that large-scale sugar estates can significantly reduce youth vulnerability to criminality, unrest, and violent activities.
“When you have sugar projects, you don’t have unrest or any security challenge because you create so many jobs for the youths,” he said.
The comments come at a time when Nigeria continues to grapple with banditry, kidnapping, rural displacement, and youth unemployment challenges experts have repeatedly linked to weak economic opportunities outside major cities.
Bakrin’s argument reflects a growing policy shift within government circles that views industrial agriculture not only as a food security strategy but also as a stabilisation mechanism for conflict-prone communities.
Power Generation Beyond Sugar Production
In perhaps one of the meeting’s most striking revelations, Bakrin disclosed that modern sugar estates are capable of generating independent electricity through integrated industrial systems, producing more energy than they consume.
“A sugar estate provides its own power; it does not rely on the national grid. As a matter of fact, it contributes to the national grid,” he explained.
According to him, sugar estates consume only about 50 per cent of the electricity they generate, while the remaining excess power can be supplied to the national grid.
“And we are talking about 400 megawatts. That is enough to power at least a small modern city or community,” he added.
The statement highlights the broader industrial possibilities embedded within the sugar sector, especially at a time Nigeria’s power generation challenges continue to constrain manufacturing growth and economic productivity.
Industry analysts note that integrated sugar estates often generate electricity from biomass and other by-products of sugar processing, creating an energy ecosystem that supports both industrial operations and nearby communities.
Push To End Dependence On Sugar Imports
Bakrin also reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to reducing Nigeria’s heavy dependence on imported sugar by encouraging large-scale domestic investments through stronger policy enforcement and institutional coordination.
He disclosed that Nigeria possesses more than one million hectares of tested and suitable land for sugar cultivation, while only about 200,000 hectares would be needed for the country to attain self-sufficiency in sugar production.
The NSDC boss explained that the successful implementation of the Nigeria Sugar Master Plan II (NSMP II) would redirect billions currently lost to imports into local economic development.
He, however, warned that investors considering multi-billion-dollar sugar projects require confidence that government incentives and approved policies would be transparently enforced without inconsistencies.
Customs Identified As Critical Partner
Bakrin described the Customs Service as the single most important enforcement institution for the success of the sugar master plan, particularly in the areas of quota implementation, anti-smuggling operations, import regulation, and fiscal incentive administration.
He stressed that weak enforcement and illicit sugar imports continue to undermine investments in local sugar production, making stronger collaboration between both agencies essential.
Responding, the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, pledged full support for the sugar sector transformation agenda.
“The potential for job creation, security, rural development, and the added value in terms of energy that we can use speaks directly to Nigeria’s economic priorities,” Adeniyi said.
He assured the NSDC of the Customs Service’s readiness to deepen intelligence sharing, improve data transparency, strengthen quota enforcement, and enhance operational collaboration to ensure effective implementation of the NSMP II.
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Both institutions agreed to jointly address five strategic areas considered critical to the survival and expansion of Nigeria’s sugar industry.
The priority areas include market stability, import and importer data management, implementation of quota allocations, enforcement of sugar-related incentives, and aggressive action against smuggling.
According to the NSDC, the collaboration will ensure that fiscal incentives and duty waivers are accessed only by eligible and verified operators, while also improving real-time data sharing on sugar imports to support evidence-based decision-making.
The agencies also agreed to fast-track the clearance of machinery and industrial equipment for legitimate operators and establish joint intelligence and enforcement teams to combat illicit sugar imports undermining the sector.
The Customs Comptroller-General further proposed periodic review meetings between both agencies to assess implementation progress, tackle operational bottlenecks, and jointly brief Bola Ahmed Tinubu on developments within the sugar sector.
For policymakers, the renewed push around sugar increasingly represents more than food production.
It is emerging as a test case for whether Nigeria can successfully use industrial agriculture to tackle multiple national challenges simultaneously: unemployment, insecurity, weak rural infrastructure, energy shortages, import dependence, and industrial underdevelopment.
If successfully implemented, the sugar master plan could redefine how agriculture is positioned within Nigeria’s broader economic and security architecture.
Esther Ososanya is an investigative journalist with Pinnacle Daily, reporting across health, business, environment, metro, Fct and crime. Known for her bold, empathetic storytelling, she uncovers hidden truths, challenges broken systems, and gives voice to overlooked Nigerians. Her work drives national conversations and demands accountability one powerful story at a time.