By Godwin Agia, Jalingo
ANI Foundation, an African-led not-for-profit organisation working to protect Nigeria’s national parks in partnership with the National Park Service is working to protect Okomu National Park in Edo State.
Home to one of Nigeria’s large populations of African forest elephants, the park is threatened by deforestation from cocoa farming.
However, ANI believes that it is possible for cocoa farming to take place alongside protection of this important elephant population. Cocoa remains a vital contributor to Nigeria’s economy, even as the nation continues to rely heavily on crude oil revenues over the past six decades.
Known as the king of cash crops, cocoa was first introduced to Nigeria by British colonialists in the 19th century, with the first cocoa trees planted in what are now Ogun, Ondo, Osun, and Ekiti States.
Over time, cocoa production increased in Nigeria and the country became one of the world’s leading producers although the local industry was dominated by small-holder farmers cultivating the crop on small plots of land.
Cocoa production experienced such rapid growth between 1920 and 1950 through favourable climate, soil conditions and government support that it drove foreign exchange earnings and created employment for many.
The growth was largely driven by the Western Region Government under Obafemi Awolowo, making cocoa a significant foreign exchange earner for both the regional and federal governments decades after.
In 2020, Nigeria earned $510 million (around N193 billion) from cocoa exports, according to Statista, boosting government revenue, and providing employment for farmers, processors, and drivers, among others.
The Cocoa Association of Nigeria’s estimates indicate the industry employs 3 million people directly and indirectly while contributing to poverty reduction and economic development.
Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) shows Nigeria raked in N1.46 trillion in the first nine months of 2024 from cocoa exports to the Netherlands, Malaysia, Indonesia, Belgium, Germany, and Italy, among others.
However, despite its importance and socio-economic benefits, attendant issues with cocoa production include deforestation, and child labour (estimates suggest over 2 million children are involved) along with rising poverty among cocoa farmers due to exploitation and limited access to finance, and trade markets.
Environmental experts believe cocoa production is a significant driver of deforestation in Nigeria, primarily due to the expansion of cocoa farms into forested areas and the constant clearing of forests to establish new cocoa farms. Shifting cultivation also contributes to a continuous cycle of deforestation.
These activities lead to loss of biodiversity, soil degradation and climate change due to the release of stored carbon into the atmosphere and reduction of forests’ ability to act as carbon sinks, the impact of which is telling in states like Ondo, Osun, Ogun, Ekiti and even Cross River.
To tackle issues regarding cocoa production across the world, the European Union, one of the largest importers of cocoa from West Africa, recently unveiled a certification drive for sustainable cocoa production to promote sustainable agriculture, reduce deforestation, and improve human rights in the global cocoa sector.
ANI Foundation plans to work with cocoa farmers around Okomu National Park to help them adopt the EU certification scheme. This will make cocoa farming around the park more environmentally sustainable and will prevent farmers from clearing forest which threatens the lives of the park’s elephants.
While helping to protect elephants and the forest the EU scheme will also enable cocoa farmers to get a premium price for their cocoa making the farmers better off, economically. ANI Foundation believes the EU certification scheme will enable Nigeria’s farmers to prosper while protecting our forests and wildlife at the same time.
