The Bank of Industry (BOI) has secured a €60 million credit facility from the European Investment Bank (EIB) to accelerate value addition in Nigeria’s cocoa industry by supporting local processing, ingredient manufacturing and chocolate production instead of the export of raw cocoa beans.
The announcement was made by the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of BOI, Dr. Olasupo Olusi, during the Africa Cocoa Summit, also known as the Cocoa Value Addition Summit, held in Abuja.
The summit, themed “From Bean to Brand,” brought together government officials and cocoa industry stakeholders from Nigeria, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire and Cameroon to advance strategies for expanding Africa’s participation in the global cocoa and chocolate value chain.
Olusi disclosed that the €60 million credit forms part of a broader €85 million EIB–BOI financing package supported by the European Union under its Global Gateway initiative.
He explained that approximately 70 per cent of the financing package has been dedicated to Nigeria’s cocoa and dairy value chains, with priority given to processors, cooperatives and micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) engaged in domestic value addition.
According to him, Nigeria must move beyond exporting raw agricultural commodities and instead build strong processing industries capable of retaining jobs, tax revenues and foreign exchange within the country.
Olusi added that BOI would also provide technical assistance to help beneficiaries comply with international quality, climate and sustainability standards, including the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), thereby improving access to premium export markets.
He revealed that the bank disbursed more than ₦164 billion to over 3,500 agro-processing and food manufacturing enterprises in 2025, supporting factories, mills, packhouses and cold-chain infrastructure while integrating nearly 48,000 smallholder farmers into industrial value chains.
The BOI chief noted that the new financing would strengthen every segment of the cocoa industry, from seedling nurseries and farmer cooperatives to cocoa grinding plants, packaging facilities and chocolate manufacturers.
A major highlight of the summit was the signing of the Abuja Declaration, through which Nigeria, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire and Cameroon formally established the Cocoa Value Addition Alliance (CVAA).
The alliance aims to deepen regional cooperation among the four countries, which collectively account for the majority of global cocoa production, while promoting local processing, industrialisation and greater African participation in the global chocolate market.
Representing President Bola Tinubu, the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, urged African cocoa-producing nations to reduce dependence on raw bean exports and focus on processing, branding and manufacturing to capture a larger share of the global cocoa economy.
He observed that although Africa produces about 70 per cent of the world’s cocoa, the continent earns only a small fraction of the revenue generated from finished chocolate products.
Kyari reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to expanding domestic cocoa processing, supporting indigenous chocolate brands and enhancing Nigeria’s competitiveness in international markets.
He also disclosed that investors are developing a 70,000-tonne cocoa processing plant in Shagamu, Ogun State, while Nigeria’s annual cocoa grinding capacity has now exceeded 120,000 tonnes.
The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, described cocoa value addition as a key pillar of Nigeria’s ambition to build a $1 trillion economy by 2030, noting that government policies are focused on strengthening manufacturing, attracting investment and expanding market access through existing trade agreements and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
Similarly, the Minister of State for Industry, Senator John Owan Enoh, said the newly established Cocoa Value Addition Alliance would enable member countries to secure a larger share of global cocoa revenues through regional cooperation, industrial processing and the development of globally competitive African cocoa brands.
Also speaking, the Chief Executive of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), Dr. Ransford Abbey, called for stronger collaboration, increased investment and greater technology transfer among cocoa-producing countries.
He warned that Africa’s continued reliance on exporting raw cocoa beans leaves the continent with less than 10 per cent of the wealth generated by the global chocolate industry.
The Head of Cooperation of the European Union Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Mr. Massimo De Luca, reaffirmed the EU’s commitment to supporting cocoa value addition in Africa and urged participating governments to strengthen policy and regulatory frameworks that will encourage investment, local processing and regional industrial development.
