TGI Group seeks cultivation of sesame to boost foreign exchange

Nigeria has been urged to support the cultivation of sesame to boost the country’s foreign exchange.

This was the submission of experts at the International Sesame Seed Conference, which ended in Kano, yesterday.

The conference was organised by the National Sesame Seed Association of Nigeria (NSSAN) in collaboration with Kano State Government and support from TGI Group, parent company of WACOT Limited, leading food and agro-allied company.

President of the association, Sherrif Balogun, said: “We are currently doing 500,000 tonnes. For Nigeria to maximise its potential, it has to first increase production, and secondly set up dehauling plants for value-addition, and thirdly to set up a sesame oil processing plant.

Also, Corporate Affairs Director, TGI Group, Sadiq Kassim, said TGI was committed to its cultivation, noting that in the last five years, sesame has progressively assumed the role of Nigeria’s leading export commodity.