For decades, Nigeria has been the world’s largest producer of cassava. Yet we have never fully translated that leadership into industrial strength. 

We grow more cassava than any other nation on earth, but we continue to import many of the starches, sweeteners, flours and specialised derivatives required by our own manufacturers. The distance between production and industrial utilization remains one of the most significant untapped opportunities in the Nigerian economy. 

Closing that gap is not simply an agricultural objective. It is an economic imperative. It is about creating jobs, strengthening local industry, reducing import dependence and building long term prosperity. 

Cassava gives Nigeria a natural advantage. The challenge is whether we can build the systems, infrastructure and market structures required to unlock its full value. 

That conviction led Cavista Holdings into the cassava value chain in 2021. We believed then, and continue to believe today, that cassava represents one of the clearest pathways to sustainable economic value creation at scale in Africa. Our goal is to connect agricultural production, industrial processing and market demand within a single integrated value chain. 

Through Agbeyewa Farms and Matna Foods, we are investing for the long term to help build that integration. Our focus is on improving productivity, strengthening supply chains, expanding processing capacity and creating economic opportunities across the value chain. 

This report is not intended as a celebration of our activities. It is an assessment of the Nigerian cassava industry as it exists today. It examines the value chain from cultivation to industrial derivatives, identifies the structural constraints that continue to limit growth and highlights the opportunities that remain underdeveloped. 

We have chosen to publish this report because we believe the cassava sector deserves a credible and practical reference point. Policymakers, investors, processors, development institutions and industry participants all require reliable information if meaningful progress is to be achieved. 

The findings are clear. Nigeria is not constrained by cassava production. The greater challenge lies in processing infrastructure, feedstock security, quality assurance systems, logistics and the financial structures required to support industrial scale operations. These are not issues that government can solve alone, nor can they be solved by private enterprise acting independently. Sustainable progress requires coordination, investment and execution across the entire value chain. 

World Cassava Day provides an opportunity to move beyond production statistics and focus on substance. Our contribution is this report. It presents both the strengths and the shortcomings of the industry because serious decisions require an honest assessment of reality. 

Nigeria’s emergence as a leading cassava processing and industrial economy is not inevitable. It must be built deliberately through investment, partnership and long-term commitment. We intend to be among those helping to build it. 

I invite government leaders, industry participants, financiers and fellow investors to engage with the findings of this report and join the conversation about what will be required to unlock the full potential of Nigeria’s cassava economy. 

Niyi John Olajide

Chairman, Cavista Holdings