Nigeria’s Palm Oil import from Malaysia, one of the world’s top producers, rose by 65.3% in the first nine months of 2023 despite naira devaluation and local players ramping up production, data from the Malaysian Palm Oil Council shows.
This was contained in data obtained from the Malaysian Palm Oil Council on Monday, October 23.
The data revealed that the country’s palm oil import from Malaysia increased to 234,324 metric tons between January to September 2023, from 141, 786 MT in the corresponding period of 2022, indicating an increase of 92,538 MT.
The country’s imports of palm oil from Malaysia grew to 234,324 metric tonnes (MT) between January and September 2023 from 141, 786 MT in the same period of 2022, representing a rise of 92,538 MT, according to data our correspondent got from the Malaysian Palm Oil Council.
The top ten importers, according to the survey were Turkey, Japan, China, Kenya, the Netherlands, and India.
In an effort to safeguard the nation’s palm oil sector and promote its expansion, the Federal Government levied a 35 per cent tariff (10% duty and 25% levy) on imports of palm oil in order to increase domestic production of crude palm oil.
Despite this, because of the enormous disparity between supply and demand, Nigerians have continued to favour the importation of palm oil over locally-made goods.
Experts projected that Nigeria produced between 900,000 and 1.3 million MT of palm oil. Over N500 billion was anticipated to be imported annually. The supply shortfall was approximately 800,000 MT, with a national demand of 2.1 million MT.
Kabir Ibrahim, the National President of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria, stated in a previous media report that Nigeria has yet to achieve food sufficiency.
