Amina Yusuf, a mother of three, did not have to worry much when her 12-year-old son, Musa, went down with malaria fever.The nearest hospital to her village in a state in the North is about 20 km away, and she cannot afford the transport fare and medical treatment of her boy.But for Amina, nature has provided a remedy, and as usual she must utilise a common herbal treatment if she must save the life of her son. And this, she did.Surrounding her family compound are numerous trees which the locals believe have the potential of curing all ailments.With a handful of leaves from the tree mixed with other herbs, Amina produced a steaming concoction of local medicament, which she administered to Musa.Musa got well after a few days of drinking from and bathing with the concoction.“With Dogonyaro I do not have to use Western medication because it is very effective in the treatment of malaria.“Dogonyaro is bitter and everyone of us took it as we grew up as children, especially those of us in the rural areas,” says Amina.The tree, Azadirachta Indica, is common in the arid and semi-arid areas of Nigeria. Otherwise called Neem, the potency of Dongoyaro is indisputable as it is has been used by many generations of rural and urban dwellers in the country.“As a child, I remember vividly the dreaded early morning cupful of Dogonyaro that my parents often forced us to drink.It is bitter but we had to take it as our anti-malarial medication.“I remember how my mother would practically force me to drink a cup each time I was down with malaria. She would force me under the cover of a blanket with a hot pot ofDogonyaro and make me inhale the steam.“It is a sure cure for malaria because no sooner was my mother done with me than I would be back on my feet,” says Mrs. Patience Okudini, a businesswoman in Ashaka, Delta State.Neem is a species of the mahogany plant family, and a native of India and Burma, both in tropical South-East Asia. It is an evergreen tree, and usually grows between 10 metres and 15 metres tall.Experts say although it is a tropical plant, it also thrives in the Savannah ecosystems.Beyond its herbal potency, Neem also stabilises the environment as it can be planted as windbreakers, particularly for checking desert encroachment.Advancements in biotechnology have found other commercial benefits of the Neem tree. These include production of soaps, organic fertilisers, toothpaste, body cream, as well as other medical products and food supplements.Dr. Hadiza Nuhu of the Department of Pharmacognosy and Drug Development, Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, describes Neem as a single tree with great but under-utilised potential.According to her, Neem is known for its anti-malarial and anti-insectile properties, as well as its effectiveness in the treatment of Chloroquine-resistant malaria.Noting that Neem has curative properties, she says the tree is the answer to finding a permanent cure for malaria.“The Nigerian Neem is much more concentrated. Thanks to research, today Neem is no longer dreaded; it is now loved.There is a lot of research potential in it.“It should be incorporated in the National Malaria Policy,” she told an international workshop on “Neem-based Products: Production and Applications’’ in Zaria.The workshop was organised by the National Research Institute for Chemical Technology (NARICT), Zaria, in collaboration with Saberg International and Trifolio-M, both of Germany.NARICT has the mandate to undertake research and development into processes for the conversion of solid minerals, petroleum and agricultural raw materials into useful industrial chemicals.It also conducts research and development activities into industrial plastics and other synthetic materials.Its Director-General, Dr Ebenezer Okonkwo, says the current global economic meltdown is an opportunity for government to look inward by developing the country’s natural resources, including Neem.According to him, processed oil from Neem seed can be another source of foreign exchange earnings that will turn around the nation’s economy.“This is the reason for the workshop to generate ideas and synergy on the best practices for utilising Neem with the philosophy of further developing the ‘wonder tree’ for more economic uses,” he says.According to him, the institute has carried out studies on the Neem tree and has documented information on how the plant can be transformed into wealth for national development.Okonkwo suggests the evolution of a policy that will encourage the cultivation of the plant across the country.“With a well developed strategy, a number of multi million-dollar industries can emerge from the Neem project.“These include health and pharmaceuticals because of its medicinal properties, agricultural support, pesticides, cosmetics, food and beverages as well as fertiliser,” he says.According to him, the Neem seed has a high concentration of Neem-bioactive ingredients, while a lot of products with great export potential can be produced from it.“The Nigeria Neem seed has about 0.6 per cent azadirachtin content, while the Indian Neem and that of other Asian countries are 0.2 per dent and 0.3 per cent respectively,” Okonkwo says.The director-general says the institute is discussing possible areas of collaboration with Erga Associate, an Israeli company, for the utlisation of Neem oil because of its attractive export potential.He notes that members of the Neem Production Association have been charged to scale up the production of the seed to meet the expected demand.Besides, he says the institute has developed sustainable and adaptable technologies for processing Neem seed into oil.“NARICT’s Neem-based bio-pesticide plant is an agro-allied plant that processes Neem seeds into Neem-based pesticide, fertilizer and oil,” Okonkwo says.Other secondary products can also be derived from the Neem seed to boost the economy, he says, adding that Neem-based biocides have a great advantage over the conventional ones, and can command a sizeable share of the international market.He says the Neem-based biocides are non-toxic, generally mild on the environment and are less prone to the problem of pest-resistance than the synthetic ones.“Global concern over pesticides that destroy useful insects such as bees makes the Neem idea more attractive because it does not destroy useful insects,” the director-general says.He adds that entrepreneurs can take advantage of the emerging market as Neem belts already exist in the frontline states of Borno, Katsina, Kebbi and Zamfara.Mr. Zakari Ladan, a researcher and a chemist at NARICT, says the genetic constituent of Neem tree resides in its seed.According to him, the export potential of Neem seed is very high, especially in countries such as India, Germany and the U.S.“Every part of the Neem tree is useful; the leaf and its back are widely used in the manufacture of ointment, face cleaning agents and toothpastes,” Ladan says.Dr. Hubertus Kleeberg, the Managing Director of Germany’s Trifolio-M and a resource person at the workshop, says Nigeria is blessed with great human and natural resources that should be the envy of other nations.He notes that one of the resources is the Neem seed and adds that it has been widely used for decades in organic production in Europe and other countries.“There is no reason why Nigeria cannot turn its economy around if adequate attention is paid to Neem seed, which is highly concentrated.“The Nigeria Neem seed contains the highest concentration of Neem-bioactive ingredient in the world,” Kleeberg notes.According to him, what the government needs is to make a deliberate effort at harnessing the natural resource to ensure its cultivation and proper utilisation.He says that besides its medicinal properties, the tree can effectively control insects, pests and mites.“It is God’s answer to most of nature’s problems,” the German says.
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