NAGGW Moves to Revive Nigeria’s Gum Arabic Industry Through Farmers’ Training

The National Agency for the Great Green Wall (NAGGW) has intensified efforts to reposition Nigeria’s Gum Arabic industry by training farmers on sustainable production practices and value chain development.

Director-General of the agency, Alhaji Sale Abubakar, stated this at the opening of a capacity-building programme for Gum Arabic farmers held in Kano. He said the initiative was aimed at enhancing productivity and supporting the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda through agricultural development and environmental sustainability.

Represented by the Director of Afforestation and Land Management, Ahmad Majidadi Bagudo, the director-general said the training was organised in partnership with the Gum Arabic Northern Farmers Association of Nigeria, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, and the Rubber Research Institute of Nigeria.

Bagudo expressed concern that Nigeria had dropped from second to fourth position among global producers of Gum Arabic, stressing the need for strategic interventions to restore the country’s competitiveness in the international market. He added that increased investment in the sector would boost farmers’ earnings, create jobs and contribute to economic growth.

Also speaking, Chairman of the Gum Arabic Farmers Association of Northern Nigeria, Isa Bakari Yarima, urged stakeholders to give greater visibility to the association and the crop’s economic potential.

He said Gum Arabic farming could serve as a tool for poverty reduction and improved security, noting that the association has members across the 19 northern states.