Nigeria, particularly Rivers State, has all the local content to develop, empower and transform the country into enviable heights.
Twelve trillion naira Ethanol imported yearly to Nigeria can end unemployment, youth restiveness in Nigeria.
These were the words of a Professor, who recommended some measures to encourage the use of local content in order to increase Nigerian’s economic growth.
Speaking during the Rivers State University’s (RSU) 93rd Inaugural Lecture with the Topic, Unit Operations Application in the Development Of Local Content: A Key To Nigeria Economic Growth, held last Wednesday, at the university’s main campus in Port Harcourt, Professor of Unit Operations in Chemical Engineering, Falilat Taiwo Ademiluyi, explained that there should be a deviation from crude oil to Cassava production.
Ademiluyi called Ogoni, Etche, Ikwerre and other local government areas on increased cassava production to reduce the high cost of fuel that Nigeria is facing presently.
She added that Nigeria is the largest producer of cassava and all result should invest heavily on cassava.
She described cassava as gold that can transform the country into enviable heights if ethanol can be produced from cassava, which in turn is capable of tackling whatever crude oil is used for.
Cassava can be processed through fermentation, grind and dried it can be stored for five years, noting that for it to be used for ethanol that will reduce the high cost of fuel Nigerians are currently facing it needs to be properly dried.
‘Enough ethanol blended with crude oil can reduce the price of petrol. From the pure water sachets and plastics we can produce aviation fuel.
“Looking at the title of the inaugural lecture, Nigeria mainly industrial supplies such as 27 percent of total in 2014, capital goods 23 percent, food and beverage 17 percent, fuel and lubricants 14 pecent, transport equipment and parts 12 percent and consumer goods seven percent, comparing that 43 percent of total imports come from Asia, 34 percent from Europe, 15 percent from America and seven percent from Africa (Trading Economics 2022).
Our top five items exported by Nigeria are Mineral fuels including crude Oil 90.7 percent, Fertilizers three percent,among others. Removal of the first item leaves Nigeria with only 9.3 percent on export, so how will any economy of a nation grow on 9.3 percent export without effective applications of unit operations to convert our local materials to the form we can export them?
Professor Ademiluyi made a 10-point recommendations that would position Nigerian Economic growth on a high scale. Some of these recommendations are as follows: that cassava processing factories should be established in all the local government areas of the state to enable farmers process them fast into dry flours or starches before sales.

By: Susan Serekara-Nwikhana