By Ange Kouakou
Despite recent coverage seeking to tarnish the image of Olam in Nigeria, we take a look at the company’s outstanding track record in the country.
The agribusiness giant has often made it clear that it owes much of its success in Africa to the success of its first project on the continent, here in Nigeria.
The firm first established operations in Nigeria in 1989, trading cashews from Africa to India, but has since moved into sesame, cotton, rice, wheat milling, animal feed and recently soybeans.
Due to phenomenal success in Nigeria – transforming the country’s agriculture sector and providing jobs for thousands of Nigerians – the company was able to expand operations and it now has a presence in 67 countries.
Indeed, the past three decades have seen Olam help Nigeria ramp up food production, improve food security and maximize much-needed investment in the agricultural sector.
Notable projects include the pioneering of domestic sesame hulling and exporting, after Olam established a state-of-the-art dry hulling and sorting plant in Shagamu in 2014.
The company also constructed a 4,451 hectares fully integrated rice farm on a greenfield site in Nasarawa State which supports a combined 13,500 hectares of rice production under its outgrower programme for local rice growing communities.
Olam’s investments align clearly with government policies to achieve self-sufficiency in food production.
Another related area of outstanding work is Olam’s “Seeds for Future” project; with five major focal pillars, which include, supporting farmers and farming communities, enabling wider education and skill development for young people, women empowerment, promoting health and nutrition, and reducing carbon emission in our operations.
In 2021, Olam, and its subsidiary, Crown Flour Mill Limited (CFM), launched a N300 million ($750,000) 10-year project to set up community seed enterprises for Nigerian farmers to increase their production of wheat.
The aim is to feed into wider research for local wheat cultivation and to accelerate the attainment of national food security and human capital development.
The project is being executed in partnership with the Lake Chad Research Institute (LCRI), the International Centre for Agricultural Research in Dry Areas (ICARDA) and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO).
Through these various initiatives, Olam has invested millions of dollars in Nigeria and currently employs more than 4,500 people across various sectors of the economy.
It has led foreign direct investment (FDI) in the country over several decades, despite periods of economic stagnation in Nigeria.
The baseless accusations made against Olam over the weekend by two Nigerian newspapers could therefore have a long-term negative impact on Nigeria’s agriculture sector and the livelihoods of thousands of people.
After close examination of Olam’s track record, it is clear that the company is fully committed to Nigeria and will continue to do excellent work, despite a recent attempt to damage its reputation.
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