Post by mdshamiul on Feb 15, 2024 13:14:14 GMT 1
Along the road that today goes to Calabar , trucks loaded with fresh bunches of palm fruits work hard; There are still more dark orange clusters piled up on the side of the road.
Despite this display of industry, 80% of Nigeria's palm oil is produced not by plantations like Ibiae , but by small farmers. But these farmers' production is limited by inadequate financing, poor management skills and access to land, says Samuel Ogallah, senior climate specialist for Africa at Solidaridad, a nonprofit that supports small-scale oil producers. palm in Africa.
In 2019, Nigeria's federal government announced that it would Singapore Email List invest $500 million to boost palm oil production , from around 600,000 tonnes to 5 million tonnes a year by 2027. Oil palm is native to West and Central Africa, But while farmers have tended palm trees as part of the larger forest, the Nigerian government's plans (which put Wilmar and other industrial producers at the center) are causing a wave of change.
The government lacks structures to support small farmers . Wilmar and other large plantation operators have become channels for the development of the palm oil sector , largely through outsourcing schemes. These plans include training and financial support and provide smallholder farmers with higher-yielding seedlings. Outsourced growers must sell their mature oil palm bunches to Wilmar's refineries and processing mills.
Raphael Offiong, director of the Carbon Innovation Center at the University of Calabar , says this is driving farmers to clear forests. “People have seen this as a profitable venture and it is generating a new rush. But it is also very dangerous. If you visit the countryside and see the level of destruction taking place in Cross River National Park , it will make you cry; It is an activity on a massive scale. These outsourced producers wreak more havoc than large greenfield companies. “They head to central forest areas.”
Offiong says a significant proportion of this forest clearing is taking place in reserves and other protected areas, including Cross River National Park , home to the critically endangered Cross River gorilla , with an estimated population of just 300. individuals.
Civil society groups such as Rainforest Resource & Development Center (RRDC) and Friends of the Earth Nigeria/Environmental Rights Action separately reported that the expansion of Wilmar's direct-owned plantations between 2012 and 2020 also poses a threat to areas of high conservation value in the state.
"We are on the brink of a disaster with the forest loss that is occurring here," says Offiong . “ Wilmar hasn't done well. …The Cross River rainforest , the last hope for gorillas, is under intense pressure.”
Paddy Njar, former wildlife director of the Cross River State Forestry Commission , says he does not expect the expansion of Wilmar's growing legion of contract farmers to be prevented. “The state government does not have any political will to protect the forest. “Politicians don’t care what happens to the forest, they care what the forest puts in their pockets.
Despite this display of industry, 80% of Nigeria's palm oil is produced not by plantations like Ibiae , but by small farmers. But these farmers' production is limited by inadequate financing, poor management skills and access to land, says Samuel Ogallah, senior climate specialist for Africa at Solidaridad, a nonprofit that supports small-scale oil producers. palm in Africa.
In 2019, Nigeria's federal government announced that it would Singapore Email List invest $500 million to boost palm oil production , from around 600,000 tonnes to 5 million tonnes a year by 2027. Oil palm is native to West and Central Africa, But while farmers have tended palm trees as part of the larger forest, the Nigerian government's plans (which put Wilmar and other industrial producers at the center) are causing a wave of change.
The government lacks structures to support small farmers . Wilmar and other large plantation operators have become channels for the development of the palm oil sector , largely through outsourcing schemes. These plans include training and financial support and provide smallholder farmers with higher-yielding seedlings. Outsourced growers must sell their mature oil palm bunches to Wilmar's refineries and processing mills.
Raphael Offiong, director of the Carbon Innovation Center at the University of Calabar , says this is driving farmers to clear forests. “People have seen this as a profitable venture and it is generating a new rush. But it is also very dangerous. If you visit the countryside and see the level of destruction taking place in Cross River National Park , it will make you cry; It is an activity on a massive scale. These outsourced producers wreak more havoc than large greenfield companies. “They head to central forest areas.”
Offiong says a significant proportion of this forest clearing is taking place in reserves and other protected areas, including Cross River National Park , home to the critically endangered Cross River gorilla , with an estimated population of just 300. individuals.
Civil society groups such as Rainforest Resource & Development Center (RRDC) and Friends of the Earth Nigeria/Environmental Rights Action separately reported that the expansion of Wilmar's direct-owned plantations between 2012 and 2020 also poses a threat to areas of high conservation value in the state.
"We are on the brink of a disaster with the forest loss that is occurring here," says Offiong . “ Wilmar hasn't done well. …The Cross River rainforest , the last hope for gorillas, is under intense pressure.”
Paddy Njar, former wildlife director of the Cross River State Forestry Commission , says he does not expect the expansion of Wilmar's growing legion of contract farmers to be prevented. “The state government does not have any political will to protect the forest. “Politicians don’t care what happens to the forest, they care what the forest puts in their pockets.