SELF STARTERS NIGERIA

Dogonyaro (Azadiractin indica) or neem is widely known in Nigeria and has traditionally been used as a herbal remedy for malaria. However, its cash spinning potential is slowly being realised as the world watches India continue to roll out products ranging from contraceptives to anti-diabetic drugs annually and raking in a tidy income, aside from the employment benefits it provides for the populace. The journey to scientific documentation and knowledge sharing on Neem resources began when Prof. H. Schmutterer, a German scientist working in Sudan during an outbreak of locusts in the region in the late 1950s observed that the locusts did not defoliate the Neem trees as they did the other plants. He later went to work to discover the secrets of Neem’s pesticidal properties. Curiously, it has its uncanny way of distinguishing between harmful and beneficial insects. Athough its activities cover well over 450 known insect pests and nematodes, it does not harm animals and benefic...