Nigeria: Cashew Association seeks N10bn development fund in 2013

The National Cashew Association of Nigeria (NCAN) says it needs N10 billion to develop the crop's value chain this year Tola Faseru, the National President of the association said in Lagos on Friday that the funds would be sourced from local and international financial organisations.

He said that the funds would help to revolutionise cashew cultivation in the country.

``We also hope that the effort will create more jobs. We are sourcing N10 billion from financial institutions in Nigeria while we also expect some international investors to key into the project.

“If adequate funding is put into cashew production and processing, more jobs will be created, especially for youths and women. We are hoping that the government will invest in the production of cashew and give more support to farmers by way of seeds, fertiliser and training,’’ the president said.

Faseru also said the association planned to train 20,000 farmers in June and November. ``About 20,000 cashew farmers will be trained; the first batch will be in June while the second will be in November. This will boost the cashew’s annual production,’’ he said.

According to him, the effort will also assist the association to create about 200,000 jobs by 2015.

Dailytimes.com.ng