NIGERIA CALLS FOR A CONTINENTAL STI FRAMEWORK TO DRIVE A NEW ERA OF CASSAVA INDUSTRIALISATION IN AFRICA

opeolumartinNovember 19, 202503 mins

Abuja, Nigeria — November 19, 2025

Nigeria has renewed its call for a unified continental framework in Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) to accelerate cassava industrialisation across Africa, positioning the crop as a strategic driver of the continent’s next phase of economic transformation.

The Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Dr. Kingsley Tochukwu Udeh, SAN, made the assertion at the 2nd Africa Cassava Conference (ACC 2025), where he declared that Nigeria’s efforts align fully with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and Executive Order 5, which place STI at the centre of national and continental development.

Describing cassava as “one of Africa’s most potent economic game-changers,” Dr. Udeh emphasized its vast potential to unlock large-scale industrial growth, strengthen food security, scale exports, and create millions of jobs across the continent. He noted that under the National Science, Technology and Innovation Policy (NSTIP 2022), his Ministry is mandated to apply STI solutions that elevate agriculture and agro-processing into globally competitive sectors.
He stressed that nations capable of transforming their agricultural resources into high-value industrial wealth would lead the global economic future. According to him, Nigeria is intentionally charting this course with determination and strategic focus.

With over 62 million tonnes of cassava produced in 2023—more than any country in the world—Dr. Udeh said the time is ripe for a technology-driven overhaul of the cassava value chain. Cassava, he noted, has evolved from a staple food crop into a vital industrial raw material used in pharmaceuticals, biodegradable plastics, construction materials, energy, sweeteners, ethanol, adhesives, and several other value-added products.

Dr. Udeh reaffirmed the Ministry’s commitment to deepening collaboration with key stakeholders, including the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, national and regional research institutions, biotechnology experts, farmer associations, private investors, and continental partners. He stated that only a coordinated African framework for STI-driven cassava industrialisation would unlock the crop’s full economic potential and position Africa as a global leader in cassava-based innovations.

Nigeria’s renewed leadership, he added, signals the beginning of a new era in which science, technology and innovation will define the continent’s agricultural and industrial future.