The National Sugar Development Council (NSDC) has ramped up its oversight and performance monitoring of operators under Nigeria’s Sugar Backward Integration Programme (BIP), aiming to fast-track local production and address critical sector bottlenecks.
At a tripartite meeting held in Abuja with officials from the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment and major BIP operators, NSDC Executive Secretary/CEO, Kamar Bakrin, said the Council had moved beyond the traditional approach of the Sugar Industry Monitoring Group (SIMOG) by adopting more proactive and result-driven strategies.
“We’ve embraced a hands-on approach, engaging operators both physically and virtually, assigning clear targets and diligently tracking deliverables,” Bakrin stated.
Chaired by the Minister of State for Industry, Senator John Owan Enoh, the meeting served as a platform for stakeholders to review progress and identify barriers to achieving the objectives of the Nigeria Sugar Master Plan (NSMP).
During the session, Bakrin revealed feedback from BIP operators indicating concerns about loopholes in the Free Trade Zone (FTZ) regime, which some participants in the sugar master plan allegedly exploit to bypass regulations, affecting fair competition and policy effectiveness.
Stakeholders at the meeting discussed strategies to plug these loopholes and reinforce the integrity of the NSMP, which seeks to drive self-sufficiency in sugar production, create jobs, and reduce Nigeria’s dependence on imports.
Bakrin reaffirmed NSDC’s commitment to working closely with all relevant partners to ensure full compliance, promote investment in the sector, and accelerate Nigeria’s journey toward sugar independence.
