Stakeholders in the Coconut value chain in Lagos State have called on the Nigeria Institute for Oil-Palm Research, NIFOR, and other research institutes to conduct continuous research and development on improved varieties of coconut with lesser gestation period.
They made the call in Ikeja at the end of a one-day Coconut Value Chain Stakeholders Forum organised
by the Lagos State Coconut Development Authority,LASCODA.
With the theme “Addressing the Bottlenecks in the Coconut Value Chain to ensure Sustainable
Development in a 21st Century Economy”, the stakeholders discussed several issues relating to
unleashing the potentials of the coconut value chain, which include low production and old plantation
The 9 point resolutions of the forum was presented by the Lagos State Commissioner for Agriculture,
Ms Abisola Olusanya.
Other resolutions include the need to encourage intercropping with other arable crops such as
pineapple, cotton, maize, soya beans to ensure quick returns and the need to rebrand Coconut in order
to attract youths to the Value Chain, an enabling environment for Public Private Partnership,
encouraging residents to plant Coconut tree in homes and environment and the Establishment of tissue
culture lab for growing viable planting materials.
Earlier, the Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Agriculture, Mr. Hakeem Adeniji said the State
Government was ready to encourage commercialization of coconut for both local and export markets.
Seventy per cent of the total coconut production from Nigeria is produced in Lagos State and ranks
Nigeria 19th in the World Coconut producing Countries.
Mr. Adeniji said that the United Nations Food Agriculture Organisation had said that there was an
annual 20 per cent increase in Coconut production in Nigeria, as well as, increase in global demand for
Coconut products by 500% within the last decade.
The Lagos State Government has been involved in the rehabilitation of the Coconut belt and production
of improved Coconut seedlings.
