Group, Alpha Palm City Synergize to Return Anambra to Top Global Oil Palm Producer
Group, Alpha Palm City Synergize to Return Anambra to Top Global Oil Palm Producer
By Chuks Collins, Awka
The National Palm Produce Association of Nigeria (NPPAN) has this weekend launched a renewed drive to restore Anambra State and the entire South East to the top tier of the global palm produce value chain.
The vision is the product of a strategic partnership between Alpha Palm City Estate Development Ltd, a private-sector–driven firm, and NPPAN.
Alpha Palm City, an agro–real estate development company, acquired estates, cultivates fast-growing and high-yielding palm nurseries and seedlings, nurtures them, and ultimately transfers them to agro-investors.
The Anambra State Commissioner for Agriculture, Prof. Foster Ihejiofor, disclosed that Governor Chukwuma Soludo is strongly committed to investing in the sector to maximize returns.
He recalled that during his 2022 visit to Malaysia, he observed that the country had designated the palm tree as a national economic plant, making it illegal for anyone to harvest or fell palm trees without government approval.
He warned that similar measures would apply in Anambra, stating that anyone who destroys palm trees would be prosecuted.
Prof. Ihejiofor emphasized that in Malaysia, every component of the palm tree is valued, and no by-product is wasted. He expressed confidence that the NPPAN–Alpha Palm City initiative could enable Anambra to replicate Malaysia’s success.
According to him, just as palm plantations underpin the Malaysian economy, they have the potential to become a cornerstone of both Nigeria’s and Anambra’s economic transformation.
He noted that Governor Soludo is prepared to support serious investors—especially cooperatives—to standardize production and acquire modern processing equipment, thereby unlocking high returns.
He lamented that Nigeria, which once supplied palm nuts to Malaysia, now imports over $500 million worth of palm oil annually from the same country. He added that over 80% of items on the shelves of a typical Nigerian supermarket are palm-oil by-products.
The Commissioner further stated that the Anambra State Government has distributed 220 million palm seedlings to more than 180,000 households in the last two years in line with Governor Soludo’s ambitious vision for the sector. He described the palm tree as a valuable economic resource capable of lifting families out of poverty.
Mrs. Alpha Ani Emeka, an executive of Alpha Palm City Estate, noted in her presentation that the company is open to partnerships with individuals and groups interested in agro-estate investment.
She explained that the company already has lands planted with high-quality, fast-yielding palm species, which it will maintain until investors are ready to assume ownership.
She encouraged local and international investors to take advantage of the ongoing “One Family, Twenty Palms” promotion, noting that payment can be made in phases and installments.
The company’s goal, she added, is to cultivate no fewer than 20 million palm trees in Anambra State in the near future.
The National Vice President (South East) of NPPAN, Dr. Lynda Onubogu, who inaugurated the newly elected Anambra State executive led by Mrs. Ifeyinwa Onweluzo, remarked that palm produce was once the backbone and trademark of the Eastern Nigerian economy before it was sadly neglected.
She described the inauguration as a call to revive the palm produce industry in the South East, starting with Anambra.
The National Secretary of NPPAN, Kayode Olatola, reiterated that the association, founded in 1995, has recorded commercial-scale palm tree presence in 29 states of the federation.
