There is no doubt that one of the most important issues confronting our nation these days is unemployment. It is the root cause of poverty, youth restiveness, gangsterism, bank robbery, outlandish assassinations, lawlessness, kidnapping and all sorts of deviant behaviours. The number of unemployed youths is high. There are over five million young boys and girls with NYSC discharge certificates roaming around the nooks and crannies of the country searching for jobs that do not exist.

The situation isn't entirely hopeless because governments, communities and civil society organisations are coming up with ways that may alleviate poverty and empower rural folks by creating wealth. Some of them are Improved Garri Production Plants, Cottage Industries and Entrepreneurship, and so on.

We encourage state governments, local governments, community development bodies and others to take the task of creating jobs seriously by establishing and increasing projects in their localities that may use local raw materials in creating wealth and employment.

Cassava

Cassava is God’s gift to the tropics because it can grow in poor soil with inadequate rainfall. The starchy roots of cassava are the primary source of food for more than 700 million people all over the world. It ranks third in order of staple food crops in developing countries after rice and maize. It's known as Manic in French, Tapioca in Latin America, Mandioca in Portuguese and Yucca in Spanish. It has universal applications.

Nigeria is the world largest producer of Cassava. We produce over 41 million metric tonnes per annum. We are followed by Brazil, Thailand, Zaire (now Democratic Republic of Congo), and Indonesia. Thailand does the most important global business in cassava because it is not part of their food security. They export over $20 billion worth of cassava products annually. Nigeria has tried to expand the native cassava business through the Composite Flour Initiative and also the Cassava direction Fund. However, up to now, they have earned very little or no success. Cassava is produced in all the Southern and Middle Belt States of Nigeria.

Garri

It's produced from Cassava Tubers and is the most common food in Nigeria. It is consumed by over 130 million individuals. We consume about 7.7 million tonnes of garri per year which comes to about 30.7 million tonnes of our cassava production. It shows that about 75 percent of our cassava output is consumed as a staple while only 25 percent is used as raw materials for starch, chips, pellets and flour which are industrial raw materials that can be exported. Our actual annual demand for Mandioca is twelve million tonnes. However to accomplish this, the manufacturing facilities ought to be improved and upgraded and Cassava production should also improve.

Our population grows at the rate of 3.5 percent annually and it means that the food capacity must also grow commensurately. Garri is created in the rural areas by native ladies. The process is full of drudgery and stress, so most of them are giving up the trade. The younger ones are not interested because they prefer life in the cities. The modern garri processing plant is meant to fill this void.

Equipment and Price

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The heart of this modern Garri processing plant is the roasting or frying pot which is made from stainless steel and insulated with fibre glass. This absorbs heat from the fire. It's high-powered by 2HP gear motor that rotates the paddles that unceasingly flip the frying garri mash. The full lists of the equipment are:

- 1 Stainless Steel; HAMMER Mill with 15 HP Electric Motor Capacity – 1 tonne/hr.

- 4 Fermentation Racks

- 4 Hydraulic Jack (Mechanical) Press Capacity 1 tonne/hr.

- 1 Stainless CAKE Granulator with 7.5 HP, Motor, 1 tonne/hr.

- 2 garri roasting/frying Pot with two H.P. Gear Motor, exhaust pipe and may be fired with firewood, Charcoal, etc. 2 tonnes/day.

Production Capacity

The Hammer Mill which is also called the Cassava Grating Machine and the Granulating Machine have the capacity of one tonne per hour. It implies that within one day of eight hours, they'll process eight tonnes of cassava mash.

The two frying machines will then roast or fry them into two tonnes of garri or 40 bags of 50kg per day. Four tonnes of cassava tubers become one tonne of garri. The capacity of the plant is therefore 2 tonnes of garri or 40 bags of 50kg per day of 8 hours. The output will increase if production time increases.

The Price Of The Plant

The value of the plant is N5 million (Five Million Naira). It is rugged, resilient and fabricated from stainless steel to satisfy each SON and NAFDAC requirements. It reduces labour and stress that are the bane of native garri production. The garri has a moisture content of 10 percent, sand of less than 1 percent and hydrocyanic acid of less than 10 percent. The shelf life is over six months, and garri is hygienic and free of microbial contamination and infestations.

Profitability of The Project

Estimations

1. The conversion rate of tubers to processed garri is 4 tonnes of cassava tubers to 1 tonne of garri.
2. That 1 tonne of cassava tuber delivered to the plants is N 5,000 per tonne.
3. The opposite prices of production aren't more than 50 % of the value of cassava tuber.i.e. 50% of N 20, 0000 which is N 10,000.
4. The selling price of one 50kg bag of gari is N5,000

Profit Forecast

- 2 Tonnes per day of 8 hrs

- Cassava tubers (8 tons x N5,000) 40,000

- Other costs of production (50%) 20,000

- Net profit per day 20,000

- Profit per year working six days

- Per week or 313 days in a year

(313 x N20,000) N 6,260, 000

The project will retire all debts after the first year of operation and return a profit of about N1,260,000. It shows that it is viable and feasible. It can also retire the debt within six months if it operates on two shifts per day.

Other Applications of the Plant

The plant can also be used in processing unripe plantain flour which is consumed mostly by diabetic patients. Nearly 15 % of our populations are diabetic and the rate is increasing rapidly because of our consumption habits. Most states that produce cassava also produce plantain. Plantain is manually peeled, grated in the hammer mill and pressed in the hydraulic jack to dewater it. Then it is granulated, roasted and finally ground again in the hammer mill to reduce it to the appropriate particle size.

The demand for hygienically produced plantain flour is high because doctors often prescribe it for patients. It does not contain carbohydrate. It also has high export potential. Garri processing Plants can even incorporate it into their activities to maximize profit throughout the plantain season. The unripe plantain must not be more than four days old before it is processed.

The plant is robust and versatile and can facilitate the process of creating employment in the rural areas whereas enhancing the availability of garri. It will reduce the drudgery and stress in garri production and will also attract unemployed graduates to garri processing.

The profitability is impressive since it can retire all debts within the first year of operation and return a net profit at N1.26 million. Profitability will also increase if the shifts are increased. The plant can also be used in processing unripe plantain flour. It's highly recommended to state governments, local government and community Development Agencies who ought to use it in poverty alleviation, rural direction, employment creation and revenue generation.