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By Akpan David, Calabar
The Cross River State chapter of National Rubber Producers, Processors and Marketers Association of Nigeria (NARPMAN) is stagging a one-week celebration of natural rubber to remind and highlight the absolute importance of the tree crop.
Speaking when they briefed journalists in Calabar to announce the week celebration, Chairman of the chapter, Reverend Inameti Umo said the celebration which kicked off from Monday 23 to Friday 27 August 2021 will enable the 600+ member body to sensitise stakeholders and governments on the need to reclassify the crop as the frontline important economic crop.
Inameti said the state occupies an important position as long as climate, soil, rainfall, temperature and labour is concerned in rubber cultivation.
He noted that rubber, being a generational investment, is used in all facets of life.
According to him, natural rubber has more than 1000 byproducts, saying they need more involvement of all stakeholders to revamp the sub-sector.
“We want to revamp the rubber sub-sector in the state. You remember it was the mainstay of the state economy before now. We want to plant mostly new varieties of rubber which are high-yielding compared with the old clones. We therefore need, at least, 30,000 hectares of land from the state government.”
Also explaining more, the national president of NARPPMAN, Otunba Prince Peter Igbinosun who arrived for the celebration and to conduct field tour of rubber plantations in the state, said there is dire need to regenerate the dying rubber plantations in the producing states.
He said before now rubber was relegated to the background, but that it is now imperative to boost the sector.
He said the rubber sector will support the industrialization drive of Cross River State governor and also help to restore the economic prowess of the state.
He said the plan to
regenerate the sector on degraded lands will restore the ecosystem in the state.
This year’s event has as theme: The Place of Rubber in Cross River State Industrial Development and Regeneration of Degraded Lands for Restoration of Ecosystem.
Igbinosun said, “We are happy to kick off this year’s Rubber week and we hope to create the needed awareness, noting that Cross River was paying it’s civil service from rubber proceeds before now.
“We hope to grow our membership strength and cultivate one million hectares of rubber plantation in Cross River State so as to support the industrialization drive of the state governor.
“We also hope to partner with the governor so that a minimum of 30,000 hectares of land be made available for small scale holders to cultivate rubber”, he said.
He stressed that the demand for rubber globally is very high and rubber plantation has been proven to help restore degraded lands.
He advised that even though the gestation period for rubber is 6-7 years, yet it lifespan of economic production is more than
35 years, yielding money daily for the farmer.
NARPPMAN officials paid a field visit to the Royal Plantation at Biakpan, organised a rubber conference and called on His Holiness Olumba Olumba Obu, a major stakeholder.
Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources in the state collaborated in the week celebration.
