Nigeria aims to level up bamboo and rattan sectors

Meeting and study tour in Ghana hints at the promise of bamboo development in West Africa.

Mr. Ukeme Joshua Nyah (right)  delivers development proposal to Mr. Michael Kwaku (left).

On 10 May 2024, INBAR’s West Africa Regional Office (WARO) hosted the President of the National Bamboo Farmers, Processors and Marketers Association of Nigeria (NBFPMAN), Mr. Ukeme Joshua Nyah in Accra, Ghana. The visit comes as part of a five-day bamboo study tour facilitated by INBAR WARO.

The NBFPMAN comprises 36 states of Nigeria, including the Federal Capital, Abuja. The Association consists of a network of individuals and entrepreneurs as well as local and international organizations working to promote bamboo industrialization and development in Nigeria.

In the meeting at INBAR’s regional office, INBAR and NBFPMAN both agreed to collaborate and work together to deepen efforts on promoting bamboo development in Nigeria and the West Africa region. In addition, the Association President presented a bamboo development proposal for Nigeria titled Reimagining Bamboo: A Sustainable Future for Nigeria.

Mr. Michael Kwaku, INBAR WARO Regional Director, emphasized INBAR’s commitment to working with stakeholders within the bamboo and rattan sectors in Nigeria and other countries in West Africa to ensure the sector is able to contribute effectively to the implementation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Mr. Kwaku also indicated that INBAR will continue to generate opportunities for and robustly support its Member States across West Africa, seeking out new forms of cooperation between key, relevant actors.

Going forward, INBAR and NBFPMAN will continue to work together to secure important funding for trainings and technical capacity building of its members, especially those in the private sector, and also to develop an effective national policy to the benefit of all stakeholders in Nigeria.

Mr. Foster, Owner and Manager of Genuine Bamboo Craft, introduced products from his company.

The NBFPMAN Association President lauded INBAR’s leading role in not only West Africa but also on the world stage regarding the promotion of bamboo and rattan, and encouraged INBAR to continue carrying forward its sustainable mission. The Association President was also accompanied by Mr. Ekpenyong, a leading member of NBFPMAN from the private sector.

The study tour in Ghana included visits to bamboo production centers in Accra, Kumasi and Suhum. In Accra, the delegation visited Genuine Bamboo Craft Enterprise, where they learned more about the ways in which the business manufactures bamboo-based products that can act as plastic substitutes.

In Kumasi, the visit took them to the National Bamboo Nursery, which was established with the support of INBAR at the Forestry Research Institute of Ghana-FORIG.

Next on the agenda, the group traveled to see the INBAR Bamboo and Rattan Common Facility Training and Production Center. This critical center was established under the Intra-Africa Bamboo Smallholders Livelihood Development Programme.

Some innovative uses for bamboo were also highlighted on the trip. Booomers, a bamboo bicycle production company owned by a young entrepreneur, was also toured, demonstrating the multifunctional applications of bamboo in a wide range of products.

To cap off the trip, participants visited Armah-Mos Craft Ventures. This enterprise is a medium-scale bamboo weaving production site established at Suhum. The owner of the business is a local beneficiary of INBAR’s implemented project work in Ghana.