A deliberate effort has been made by Nigeria to catapult Nigeria’s cocoa export capabilities, courtesy of the minister of state for trade and industries, Senator John Owan Eno, who is galvanising other countries in the West African sub region for the purpose.
Accordingly, four countries-Nigeria, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire and Cameroon- are expected to launch a joint push to retain more value from the global chocolate industry.
The fresh move is aimed at ending decades of exporting raw cocoa beans while importing finished products at far higher prices.
The four countries, which produce about two-thirds of the world’s cocoa, are expected to sign the Abuja Declaration at the Cocoa Value Addition Summit 2026, establishing a Cocoa Value Addition Alliance to coordinate positions on processing, quality standards, trade negotiations and international market access.
The move comes amid growing pressure on cocoa-producing countries to increase domestic processing and industrialisation despite sharp swings in global prices and new environmental compliance requirements from major export markets.
Nigeria will also sign a Cocoa Value Addition Accord with governors of cocoa-producing states, farmers’ organisations, processors, researchers and development finance institutions, committing stakeholders to expand local processing, improve farmers’ earnings and attract investment across the cocoa value chain.
Implementation of the accord will be supervised by a delivery council chaired by the Minister of State for Industry, Senator John Owan Enoh, with annual public reports on progress.
The summit takes place against a backdrop of unprecedented volatility in the international cocoa market. Global cocoa prices have moved from record highs of more than $11,000 per metric tonne to about $3,000 before recovering to around $5,000 within 18 months, exposing producers to severe income fluctuations.
The meeting is also expected to adopt a common position on the implementation of the European Union Deforestation Regulation, which comes into effect for large and medium-sized operators on December 30, 2026. The regulation requires plot-level traceability for cocoa exported to the European Union, which accounts for about 60 per cent of global cocoa imports. The proposed alliance will seek recognition of member countries’ national traceability systems while advocating that the cost of compliance should not be borne by smallholder farmers.
Enoh said the initiative was designed to reposition African cocoa-producing countries within the global value chain by promoting processing, manufacturing and branding instead of continued dependence on raw bean exports.
The summit will also feature discussions on financing for cocoa processing involving the Bank of Industry, NIRSAL and other development finance institutions, while industry stakeholders are expected to receive updates on the development of a 70,000-metric-tonne cocoa processing plant under construction in Sagamu, Ogun State, and scheduled for commissioning in 2027.
