Market News
'Cocoa boys' flock to Nigerian farmlands, drawn by high prices - REUTERS
By Ben Ezeamalu
Summary
- Cocoa prices surged on world markets in 2023-2024
- In Nigeria, thousands switch careers to grow cocoa
- Official: big share of Nigerian beans smuggled out
IKOM, Nigeria, May 6 (Reuters) - Growing up in Nigeria's cocoa farming area of Ikom in the southeast, Anyoghe Akwa did not see much of a future, so instead he decided to move away, study civil engineering and carve out a career in the construction industry.
That was until 2023, when he heard that cocoa prices were surging and farmers back home in Ikom were making a fortune.
"We saw 20-year-olds who never attended university generating a lot of money from cocoa farming, while those of us who were aspiring for a PhD were struggling," said Akwa, 47, who had enrolled in a doctorate programme.
