Chlorpyrifos Situation Report, Nigeria

Nigeria is one of the world's seven most populous countries, and the most populous black nation globally, with a population of over 200 million (Worldometer, 2020) and an average population density of 226 persons per square kilometer. The economy hinges on two pillars: the fossil fuels industry (oil and gas) and agriculture. Combined the two sectors make up about 65% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), while the secondary sector (manufacturing) contributes about 7% and the tertiary sector (transport, trade, housing, etc.) contributes about 25%. Agriculture is an economically important sector in Nigeria that provides employment for about 35% of the population and contributes almost 22% of the country’s GDP in 2021.

The study approach involved desktop literature review, assessing national records and key Informant Interviews from relevant stakeholders. These include officials from the National Agency for Food Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD), National Environmental Standard Regulation and Enforcement Agency (NESREA), crop protection experts, and others.

Results and findings show the quantity of pesticides imported into Nigeria from January 2017 to April 2022 provided by the National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC). In this data, it was reported that chlorpyrifos imported into Nigeria in the past 5 years was over 4 million liters and over six hundred tonnes. The highest import (over one million liters) of chlorpyrifos was recorded in 2019. In 2021, 854,644 liters was imported. The countries importing to Nigeria in the past 5 years were China, India and Argentina. Currently, chlorpyrifos is banned in India and highly restricted in China but is still imported from these countries to Nigeria.

This report relates to Sustainable Development Goals 2, 3, 6, 8, 12, 13, 14 and 15.

Special thanks to IPEN's Anglophone Africa Regional Coordinator Silvani Mng'anya, IPEN’s Anglophone Africa Regional Hub AGENDA, and especially to IPEN Participating Organization, SRADev Nigeria for their important contributions to the project.