Nigeria is targeting annual sugar production of more than 2 million metric tonnes through 13 existing and proposed sugar projects across the country.
The Executive Secretary of the National Sugar Development Council (NSDC), Kamar Bakrin, disclosed this at a news conference organised by the Commerce and Industry Correspondents Association of Nigeria (CICAN) in Abuja.
Bakrin said the projects comprise three existing operators and 10 proposed new sugar estates across eight states, with the combined capacity expected to exceed the country’s annual sugar consumption of about 1.8 million metric tonnes.
He added that Nigeria’s two operating sugar mills produced about 27,000 tonnes of sugar in the previous season, while more than 97% of the country’s sugar consumption was met through refining imported raw sugar.
Existing operators account for 1.2 million tonnes
Nigeria’s three major sugar refiners have a combined installed refining capacity of 3.69 million metric tonnes per annum. Dangote Sugar Refinery has an installed capacity of 1.44 million tonnes, BUA Sugar has 1.5 million tonnes, while Golden Sugar Company has 750,000 tonnes.
The NSDC also lists 2024 quota allocations of 650,000 tonnes for Dangote Sugar, 550,000 tonnes for BUA Foods and 500,000 tonnes for Golden Sugar Company, totalling 1.7 million tonnes.
These figures represent quota allocations, not actual production. The country’s two operating sugar mills produced a combined 30,987 tonnes of sugar in the 2024/25 crushing season, according to the NSDC.
- According to Bakrin, the three existing operators are targeting combined annual production of 1.2 million metric tonnes, while the 10 proposed projects are expected to contribute another 835,000 tonnes at full capacity.
- “Together, if you look at it, we are talking about 13 projects, the three incumbents plus 10 new projects. They will take Nigeria past the two million metric tonnes that we are talking about,” he said.
The council has also validated 1.2 million hectares of land considered suitable for sugar production, compared with the estimated 250,000 hectares required for Nigeria to achieve self-sufficiency.
Bakrin said the proposed estates would produce sugar, ethanol and electricity to diversify revenue streams and improve the commercial viability of the projects.
Outgrower programme targets 11,000 hectares
The NSDC is also targeting 11,000 hectares of farmer-grown sugarcane under its Sugarcane Outgrower Development Programme, which is designed to support production around existing sugar mills.
- The programme is expected to produce about 880,000 tonnes of sugarcane annually, with 7,000 hectares already identified with partners in Kwara, Niger and Adamawa states.
- Bakrin said economic reforms had changed the cost dynamics between importing sugar and producing it locally, improving the economics of domestic production.
- According to the executive secretary, the Sugarcane Outgrower Development Programme is expected to save Nigeria about $2.1 billion annually in foreign exchange when fully implemented.
He added that the programme would create about 110,000 direct and indirect jobs and support more than one million livelihoods across the sugar value chain.
Nigeria’s push for sugar self-sufficiency
The latest production target builds on other government-backed efforts to expand Nigeria’s domestic sugar industry and reduce dependence on imports.
Nairametrics also reported in August 2025 that the NSDC had signed agreements with four operators to develop sugar estates with a combined projected annual production capacity of 400,000 metric tonnes.
