Cashew export ban will trigger massive job losses — Kogi stakeholders
Stakeholders in Nigeria's cashew industry warn that a proposed ban on raw cashew nut exports, advocated by the Cashew Processors and Packers Association of Nigeria (CAPPAN), would devastate the sector. While CAPPAN claims the ban would bolster local processing, others argue Nigeria lacks the capacity to process its cashew output, with current capacity only able to handle 5% of the total crop yield. A ban would cause mass unemployment in rural communities, destroy the value chain, and cripple the agro-export market. The stakeholders accuse processors of prioritizing their own interests by attempting to manipulate prices, and they criticize the short-sightedness of the proposal, emphasizing that supporting infrastructure, rather than stifling exports, would be the better solution for development. They also caution that the ban could exacerbate existing insecurity.