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Oba Dokun Thompson is the Oloni of Eti-Oni in Osun State. He is also the Founder of the International Cocoa Diplomacy (ICD). In this interview with NURUDEEN ALIMI, he speaks on the approval of the establishment of the National Cocoa Management Board, why industry players are pleased with the establishment and how it will be a game changer for the Nigeria Cocoa industry:
THE Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved the establishment of the National Cocoa Management Board, what is your take on this?
First, we need to understand that this is not the first time the country will have a cocoa board. The then Cocoa Board was abrogated in 1986 as part of a wider economic reform strategy at that time to deregulate and liberalise the cocoa and produce industries in the country as part of conditions for an IMF loan but today the situation is different and the country needs to take very important and critical steps as well as make necessary tactical moves either through new policies or policy redirection for economic advancement and the FEC approval of the National Cocoa Management Board is a beautiful and welcome development to begin the putting together of the structure and infrastructure that will help the country to fully exploit the potentials and extract the real value which is enormous from the industry towards improving our GDP.
Of what importance is this board to the Nigeria Cocoa Industry?
The industry has suffered a lot of setbacks over the last 40 years without a central body because without the necessary legal framework or a government-owned entity that will bring together all stakeholders and key players and also take ownership of the goals and objectives, the approach and direction, achieving success will be difficult. For instance, the most recent International Cocoa Agreement, ICA of 2010 was only signed by Nigeria in 2017 by the former President and the main objective in that agreement was to ensure the development and advancement of the local cocoa economy of producing regions but this has not been the case in our situation because efforts have been fragmented but now, the board will be able to work well within ICCO, UNCTAD, ITC, etc with a more concise approach for well defined and measurable goals. Only recently, we saw the reintroduction of tariffs by the US on our cocoa and its derivatives. We are also currently dealing with the EUDR. The UK has also mentioned the possibility of introducing similar policies for produce imports to the country in another 2 years or so. The world is now more dynamic than it was and rapidly changing and if we are not ahead, we should at least be able to keep abreast of trends and these changes to be able to adopt or comply. A nation’s economic empowerment comes from how well they can streamline and develop their international trade.
How will you advise the FG on the constitution of the Board?
The draft Bill is very comprehensive in its composition. It is to be made up of the Deputy Governors of all the cocoa producing states which was part of the strategy in the early 2000s in the National Cocoa Management Committee, NCMC which was re-introduced in 2022 and is now transmitting into the National Cocoa Management Board. The stakeholders, traders, exporters, farmers, relevant government agencies are also well represented in the composition based on the draft and we hope the eventual Bill and its composition will reflect the recommendations because it will completely change the face of the cocoa industry in terms of production and productivity. It will also put smiles on the faces of farmers while working to produce best achievable quality and standards, encouraging and ensuring ethical as well as climate-smart agricultural practices. I have said a number of times that Nigeria was in the best position to lead the way and show how cocoa can be produced in a manner that will fully benefit everyone and I see this board being able to do exactly that. The provisions of the board though regulates the industry, it does not allow for creating a stiff regimented price control mechanism which actually limits and stifles growth due to the inability and difficulty to respond to rapid market changes immediately, as it exists in other cocoa producing jurisdictions. In short, this Bill will bring about the transformational power of cocoa in every sense of it and we hope it is also supported with the right and prerequisite funding that will make it viable. Regulatory bodies when funded by external bodies always tend to fall prey of being compromised by special interests so the hope is that when it is fully established, it is also adequately funded by the government. The main objective which is in the overall interest of the country can then be pursued without fear or favour.
Will the establishment of this board in any way improve what Cocoa generates in terms of forex?
Cocoa is a global product and one of its primary benefits to countries that produce and export cocoa is its ability to generate forex which we are already doing but with the introduction of this management board, that potential will now be increased in multiple folds. For instance, prior to this Board, the Hon Minister of Agriculture and Food Security inaugurated the National Task Force in October 2024 which he co-chairs with the Honourable Minister of Industry Trade and Investment on EUDR compliance to collate also the necessary data and build a National Framework for Sustainable and Traceable Produce so that our export of 7 products to the EU will not be affected when the policy comes into effect on 1st Jan 2026. Also, Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria, CRIN will now be able to better activate their cocoa seedlings with short gestation period, pest resistance capacity and increased output per hectare with the right investment which only means that the country’s capacity can easily be multiplied. There is also the plan to transit from conventional cocoa to organic cocoa and with the Board in place, the country can now work towards achieving this within 5 to 8yrs period with a large percentage of our projected output being organic, traceable and sustainable. International Cocoa Diplomacy, ICD is also working to ensure we can prove the fine flavour profiles of our cocoa through scientific research. All these will help to premiumize our cocoa and that automatically will translate to increased Forex earnings for the country. What I see is a practical and workable model would have been created that can now be replicated across other cash crops in no time and the country will benefit a lot from it.
The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved the establishment of the National Cocoa Management Board, what is your take on this?
First, we need to understand that this is not the first time the country will have a cocoa board.
The then Cocoa Board was abrogated in 1986 as part of a wider economic reform strategy at that time to deregulate and liberalise the cocoa and produce industries in the country as part of conditions for an IMF loan but today the situation is different and the country needs to take very important and critical steps as well as make necessary tactical moves either through new policies or policy redirection for economic advancement.
The FEC approval of the National Cocoa Management Board is a beautiful and welcome development to begin the putting together of the structure and infrastructure that will help the country to fully exploit the potentials and extract the real value which is enormous from the industry towards improving our Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Of what importance is this board to the Nigerian Cocoa Industry?
The industry has suffered a lot of setbacks over the last 40 years without a central body because without the necessary legal framework or a government-owned entity that will bring together all stakeholders and key players and also take ownership of the goals and objectives, the approach and direction, achieving success will be difficult. For instance, the most recent International Cocoa Agreement, ICA of 2010 was only signed by Nigeria in 2017 by the former President and the main objective in that agreement was to ensure the development and advancement of the local cocoa economy of producing regions, but this has not been the case in our situation; because efforts have been fragmented but now, the board will be able to work well within International Cocoa Organisation (ICCO), United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), International Trade Centre (ITC), and the likes with a more concise approach for well-defined and measurable goals.
Only recently, we saw the reintroduction of tariffs by the United States on our cocoa and its derivatives.
We are also currently dealing with the EUDR. The UK has also mentioned the possibility of introducing similar policies for produce imports to the country in another two years.
The world is now more dynamic than it was and rapidly changing and if we are not ahead, we should at least be able to keep abreast of trends and these changes to be able to adopt or comply.
A nation’s economic empowerment comes from how well they can streamline and develop their international trade.
How will you advise the Federal Government on the constitution of the Board?
The draft Bill is very comprehensive in its composition. It is to be made up of the Deputy Governors of all the cocoa producing states which was part of the strategy in the early 2000s in the National Cocoa Management Committee (NCMC) which was re-introduced in 2022 and is now transmitting into the National Cocoa Management Board. The stakeholders, traders, exporters, farmers, relevant government agencies are also well represented in the composition based on the draft and we hope the eventual Bill and its composition will reflect the recommendations because it will completely change the face of the cocoa industry in terms of production and productivity.
It will also put smiles on the faces of farmers while working to produce best achievable quality and standards, encouraging and ensuring ethical as well as climate-smart agricultural practices.
I have said a number of times that Nigeria was in the best position to lead the way and show how cocoa can be produced in a manner that will fully benefit everyone and I see this board being able to do exactly that.
The provisions of the board though, regulate the industry, it does not allow for creating a stiff regimented price control mechanism which actually limits and stifles growth due to the inability and difficulty to respond to rapid market changes immediately as it exists in other cocoa producing jurisdictions.
In short, this Bill will bring about the transformational power of cocoa in every sense of it.
Will the establishment of this board in any way improve what Cocoa generates in terms of forex?
Cocoa is a global product and one of its primary benefits to countries that produce and export cocoa is its ability to generate forex which we are already doing but with the introduction of this management board, that potential will now be increased in multiple folds. For instance, prior to this Board, the Hon Minister of Agriculture and Food Security inaugurated the National Task Force in October 2024 which he co-chairs with the Honourable Minister of Industry Trade and Investment on EUDR compliance to collate also the necessary data and build a National Framework for Sustainable and Traceable Produce so that our export of seven products to the EU will not be affected when the policy comes into effect on 1st Jan 2026.
Also, Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN) will now be able to better activate their cocoa seedlings with short gestation period, pest resistance capacity and increased output per hectare with the right investment which only means that the country’s capacity can easily be multiplied.
There is also the plan to transition from conventional cocoa to organic cocoa and with the Board in place, the country can now work towards achieving this within a five to eight years period with a large percentage of our projected output being organic, traceable and sustainable.
International Cocoa Diplomacy (ICD) is also working to ensure we can prove the fine flavour profiles of our cocoa through scientific research.
All these will help to premiumize our cocoa and that automatically will translate to increased Forex earnings for the country.
What I see is that a practical and workable model would have been created that can now be replicated across other cash crops and in no time the country will benefit a lot from it.
READ ALSO: Cocoa farmers demand regulatory board to develop industry
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