The Federal Government has announced that Nigeria and other cocoa-producing African countries have agreed to strengthen their collaboration to enhance local cocoa processing, increase farmers’ earnings, and position the continent to play a more significant role in the global cocoa value chain.
The Minister of State for Industry, Senator John Enoh, made this announcement in a statement following the recently concluded Cocoa Value Addition Summit held in Abuja. According to the minister, the summit resulted in the adoption of the Abuja Declaration, a framework aimed at increasing value addition within Africa’s cocoa industry and reducing the continent’s reliance on exporting raw cocoa beans.
Enoh explained that the initiative is designed to address the long-standing imbalance in the global cocoa trade, where African countries produce the majority of the world‘s cocoa but earn only a fraction of the industry’s total value. The minister noted that every cocoa farmer who has sold a harvest for less than its worth already understands the value gap in the cocoa industry, and the summit was held to bridge this gap.
For decades, cocoa-producing countries have exported raw beans only to import finished products at significantly higher prices. As the minister stated, “For generations, our cocoa has left home unfinished, and returned to us finished, at prices we had no hand in setting. The Summit was called to bridge that gap, giving Nigeria and its neighbours the tools to process, brand and price cocoa on their own terms.”
As part of the Abuja Declaration, participating countries agreed to pursue a coordinated approach to global cocoa trade and improve the competitiveness of African cocoa products. The minister stated, “Signatory nations have agreed to speak with a single coordinated voice in global markets, raise standards and traceability across the supply chain, and prepare for shifting global trade rules, including the EU Deforestation Regulation, effective 30 December 2026.”
The European Union Deforestation Regulation will require companies exporting commodities such as cocoa into EU markets to demonstrate that their products are not linked to deforestation, a move expected to reshape international agricultural trade. Therefore, Enoh explained that the declaration would benefit stakeholders across the cocoa value chain, particularly farmers, processors, and entrepreneurs seeking to expand local manufacturing and build globally competitive brands.
“This is a Declaration for the farmer chasing a fairer price, the processor scaling a factory floor, and the entrepreneur building a brand the world will recognise. Growth here means growth felt where it matters most, at the root of the industry,” he stated. Nigeria is one of Africa’s leading cocoa producers, alongside Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, and Cameroon. However, like many producing countries, much of its cocoa is exported as raw beans, limiting earnings from the global chocolate and confectionery market.
Successive governments have identified value addition, agro-processing, and export diversification as key strategies for increasing foreign exchange earnings, creating jobs, and boosting industrialisation. The Cocoa Value Addition Summit forms part of broader efforts by the Federal Government and regional partners to encourage local processing, strengthen supply chain standards, and enable African countries to capture a larger share of the multibillion-dollar global cocoa industry.
