Cross River to revive declining cocoa production

The Cross River Government plans to revive the declining cocoa production in the state as alternative source of revenue for sustainable development,  Prof. Anthony Eneji, the Cross River Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources,said on Tuesday.

Speaking while inaugurating a 17-member Cocoa Allocation Committee, Eneji expressed government’s concern about the steady decline in cocoa production which stemmed from the low yield from government-owned cocoa estates as a result of aged cocoa trees.

“To stop this decline, we need to take immediate steps that will ensure a sustainable future development of the cocoa industry in Cross River State, ‘’ he said.

According to him, government has a robust plan to increase agricultural production and processing, especially in cocoa.

He described cocoa as a major cash crop at the local and international markets.
The commissioner said that the state needed to sustain and improve production by replanting and rehabilitating government-owned cocoa estates using the Small Holder Cocoa Allocation Scheme.

He charged the committee to conduct a credible and transparent allocation exercise that would facilitate the envisaged replanting and rehabilitation programme.

The commissioner said that was the only way government could achieve its set objective.

“The era of allocating plots to non-existing farmers or ghost names is over; It is now time for real business, not business as usual, ‘’ he said.

Eneji said that out of seven distinct cocoa estates with estimated 10,000 hectares created by the then Eastern Region Government, only four estates in Etung Local Government area were currently functioning.

According to him, this has brought the total holdings of the state to a little above 4,000 hectares.

He appealed for the cooperation of the landlord communities to enable the committee succeed, while assuring them that arrears owed them by previous administrations would be paid soon.

“Your request for an increase in royalty to N500 per hectare as against the current N200 is receiving attention. We also appeal for the withdrawal of the court case between the landlord communities and the state government in this regard as the present administration has accepted your preferred option of Small Holders’ Scheme instead of outright privatisation, ‘’ he said.

Responding, Mr Augustine Ayuk, the Chairman of the Committee, thanked the state government for heeding to the demand of the cocoa stakeholders in the state.

He assured the commissioner of the ability of the committee to carry out the mandate and solicited for the support of the ministry.

Ayuk also appealed to the state government to allow the committee to expand cocoa estates beyond Etung to Akamkpa, Obubra and Boki local government areas of the state.

Speaking, the Leader of the Landlord Communities, Mr Obi Atangban, commended the government for the initiative and urged the government to ensure that only rightful cocoa farmers benefited from the allocation exercise.