The Federal Government has stepped up efforts to reform Nigeria’s sugar sector, with the Minister of State for Industry, Sen. John Owan Enoh, commencing a series of strategic inspections of sugar projects nationwide.
The inspections, which began with the Lafiagi Sugar Company, LASUCO, in Kwara State, are in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s directive to accelerate Nigeria’s drive towards self-sufficiency in sugar production.
During the visit, the Minister conducted a comprehensive tour of LASUCO’s integrated sugar complex, inspecting its sugar mill, ethanol plant, power infrastructure, irrigation systems, and more than 700 hectares of existing sugarcane plantations.
Owned by BUA Group, the project is designed as a 10,000-tonne-per-day sugar mill, with the capacity to produce up to 220,000 metric tonnes of refined sugar annually when fully operational.
Speaking during tour, Enoh commended the Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the National Sugar Development Council, NSDC, Mr. Kamar Bakrin, for effectively motivating and monitoring Backward Integration Programme, BIP.
The minister said the scale of infrastructure, level of investment and progress recorded at LASUCO demonstrate a strong commitment to the objectives of the programme.
He noted that President Tinubu has specifically mandated him, working closely with the NSDC leadership, to ensure that operators move decisively from project planning to full-scale production.
While acknowledging the progress made at the Lafiagi facility, the Minister stressed the urgent need to accelerate sugarcane development to match installed factory capacity, emphasising that rapid farm expansion is critical to achieving full operational readiness.
Enoh reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to sustained engagement with credible investors, traditional institutions and host communities, as Nigeria intensifies efforts to revitalise the sugar industry, conserve foreign exchange, create jobs and deepen industrial value chains.
