Cassava Multiplication Project: A Pillar for Nigeria’s Food Security

At SAO Agro, we are at the center of combating food insecurity, boosting economic activities, and scaling agribusiness. And we are doing that by introducing new farming methods through our advisory services to smallholder farmers and handling large-scale projects. One of such is the ongoing cassava multiplication project, a pioneering initiative aiming to plant 1 million stems of high-quality cassava across 35 hectares of land in Nigeria. This ambitious endeavor is not just about planting crops; it’s about fundamentally transforming the agricultural landscape and securing the future of a staple that feeds millions.

 

Understanding the “King of Crops”: Cassava in Nigeria

To truly grasp the significance of SAO Agro’s project, one must first appreciate the profound role cassava plays in Nigeria. Cassava, or Manihot esculenta, is a woody shrub whose starchy tuberous roots are a primary source of carbohydrates for over 80% of Nigerians. It is a resilient crop, celebrated for its ability to thrive in marginal soils and withstand drought conditions, making it an ideal choice for the diverse climatic zones across the country.

Nigeria stands as the world’s largest producer of cassava, with an annual output that has recently risen to over 60 million metric tons. This monumental production contributes significantly to Nigeria’s agricultural GDP, making it a cornerstone of both food security and rural livelihoods. From garri and fufu consumed daily in millions of households to its increasing use in industrial applications like starch, flour, and ethanol, cassava is an indispensable commodity.

Despite its immense importance, Nigeria’s cassava sector faces persistent challenges. While our production volume is unmatched globally, our yield per hectare (around 6-8 tons/ha) lags significantly behind countries like Thailand (20.61 tons/ha) and Brazil (over 35 tons/ha). This productivity gap is often attributed to several factors:

• Pervasive diseases: Cassava Mosaic Disease (CMD) and Cassava Brown Streak Disease (CBSD) can devastate fields, leading to substantial yield losses.
• Lack of quality planting material: Smallholder farmers, who constitute the vast majority of cassava growers, often rely on traditional stem cuttings that might be old, diseased, or of inferior varieties.
• Suboptimal farming practices: Limited access to modern agronomic knowledge, improved cultivars, and appropriate inputs hinders optimal productivity.
• Post-harvest losses: The perishable nature of cassava roots means significant losses if not processed or sold quickly.

These challenges highlight a critical need to bridge the gap between Nigeria’s potential as a cassava powerhouse and the realities on the ground. This is precisely where the strategic intervention of projects like SAO Agro’s cassava multiplication comes into play.

 

The Power of Multiplication: What SAO Agro is Doing

At its core, cassava multiplication is the art and science of rapidly creating numerous healthy, genetically identical copies of superior cassava plants. Unlike crops grown from seeds, cassava is typically propagated vegetatively, meaning new plants sprout from parts of an existing plant, primarily its stems. This method is vital for maintaining the desirable traits of high-yielding, disease-resistant varieties.

SAO Agro’s 1 million stem project is far from a traditional planting exercise; it is a meticulously planned, large-scale operation designed to revolutionize the availability of quality cassava planting material in Nigeria. Here’s a glimpse into what such a project entails and its transformative potential:

1. Selection of Elite Varieties: The project begins with the careful selection of superior cassava varieties. These aren’t just any cassava plants; they are scientifically proven, high-yielding, and disease-resistant cultivars, often developed by research institutions such as the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA). These “mother plants” are the genetic blueprint for future generations of healthy cassava.
2. State-of-the-Art Multiplication Hubs: Instead of relying on conventional methods, SAO Agro employs rapid multiplication techniques within specialized nursery environments, potentially including screenhouses or propagation tunnels. Techniques such as “ministem cuttings” or “two-bud cuttings” allow for a significantly higher multiplication ratio, meaning one healthy mother plant can produce dozens, if not hundreds, of new, robust plantlets in a much shorter time frame. This efficiency is critical for producing the sheer volume of 1 million stems.
3. Rigorous Quality Control: A paramount focus will be on ensuring the health and genetic purity of every single stem. This involves strict phytosanitary measures to prevent the spread of diseases from the multiplication centers to farmers’ fields. Each stem is a promise of a healthy, productive future plant.
4. Strategic Field Deployment: The 35 hectares of land serve as a massive “nursery farm” where these multiplied stems are initially grown. This large-scale cultivation allows for further multiplication of stems, creating an exponential increase in planting material. After a growth period, the stems from these plants will be harvested for widespread distribution.
5. Farmer Empowerment and Outreach: A key output of this project is not just the stems themselves, but their dissemination to smallholder farmers. This involves extensive advisory services, training programs, and potentially direct distribution channels to ensure that farmers across Nigeria have access to these high-quality, disease-free planting materials.

 

The Benefits: A Multiplier Effect for Nigeria

The impact of SAO Agro’s cassava multiplication project extends far beyond the 35 hectares, creating a powerful multiplier effect across Nigeria’s agricultural sector and economy:

1. Enhanced Food Security: By significantly increasing the availability of healthy, high-yielding cassava stems, the project directly tackles food insecurity. More productive farms mean more cassava roots harvested, providing a stable and abundant food source for Nigerian families. This reduces reliance on imports and strengthens national resilience.
2. Increased Farmer Income and Livelihoods: When farmers plant improved, disease-free stems, their yields skyrocket. Higher yields translate directly into more produce to sell, leading to substantial increases in income for smallholder farmers. This economic empowerment can lift families out of poverty, improve access to education, and enhance living standards in rural communities.
3. Disease Management and Crop Resilience: The project is a critical frontline defense against devastating cassava diseases. By ensuring that only disease-free stems are multiplied and distributed, SAO Agro helps break the cycle of infection, leading to healthier fields and more resilient cassava crops nationwide. This proactive approach saves farmers from devastating losses.
4. Accelerated Adoption of Improved Varieties: Research institutions constantly develop superior cassava varieties. However, these innovations often remain confined to research plots due to a lack of sufficient planting material for widespread dissemination. SAO Agro’s project acts as a vital bridge, rapidly multiplying these elite varieties and making them accessible to a much broader farming population, thereby accelerating agricultural modernization.
5. Stimulating Industrial Growth: The increased supply of high-quality cassava roots will feed Nigeria’s burgeoning cassava processing industries. From large-scale starch factories to smaller garri and fufu processing units, a consistent supply of quality raw material is crucial. This, in turn, can create more jobs in the processing sector, encourage investment, and boost non-oil earnings for the country.
6. Sustainable Agricultural Practices: By promoting the use of robust and resilient varieties, the project implicitly encourages more sustainable farming. Healthier plants require fewer interventions, and higher yields from existing land reduce the pressure to clear more forest for cultivation.

 

SAO Agro’s 1 million stem cassava multiplication project is a strategic investment in Nigeria’s future. By tackling fundamental challenges in cassava production, SAO Agro is not only ensuring food on the table but also sowing the seeds for widespread economic prosperity, rural development, and a more resilient agricultural sector. This project exemplifies how focused, innovative agribusiness practices can unlock the vast, untapped potential of Nigeria’s agricultural landscape.