FG Unveils Plans To Boost Food Production

The Federal Government has unveiled new agricultural reforms aimed at ending hunger, boosting food production, and reducing post-harvest losses estimated at over $10bn annually, in line with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda for food security and national prosperity.

The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, and the Minister of State, Senator Sabi Abdullahi, announced this through a signed statement on Thursday.

Kyari said agriculture remained the backbone of Nigeria’s economy and the key to national renewal. “Agriculture remains the single largest employer of labour in Nigeria and contributes more than one-quarter of our Gross Domestic Product. Yet beyond these figures lies a deeper truth: agriculture is the measure of our nation’s resilience and the foundation of our collective renewal,” he said.

He explained that the government’s ongoing reforms were designed to “end hunger, ensure food sufficiency and drastically reduce post-harvest losses draining the nation’s agricultural value chain.”

“Together, these tiers will form a connected post-harvest system aimed at cutting losses valued at over $10bn annually, while improving food quality, farmer incomes, and price stability nationwide,” Kyari added.

The minister further stated, “As we deepen mechanisation, expand irrigation, and strengthen our storage systems, we are laying the foundation to end hunger and make food abundance a reality for every Nigerian household.”

He reaffirmed President Tinubu’s directive to modernise Nigeria’s agricultural production. “Mr President’s charge remains clear: ‘Our farmers must transition from hoes and cutlasses to tractors and harvesters. Food sufficiency is the first currency of national stability,” he said.

Kyari disclosed that the government was already implementing key policies and programmes to support this transition, including the National Agricultural Growth Scheme–Agro-Pocket, the Renewed Hope Agricultural Mechanisation Programme, and the Nigeria Postharvest Systems Transformation Programme.

“Just last month, in October, a new milestone was achieved with the introduction of rainfed wheat cultivation in Kuru, Plateau State, an innovation by the Lake Chad Research Institute that extends wheat farming beyond irrigated zones,” Kyari said.

“With rainfed varieties now proven viable across the highlands of Plateau, Taraba, and Cross River states, Nigeria is charting a new course toward all-year farming and self-sufficiency in wheat production.”

On post-harvest management, the minister described the NiPHaST programme as a legacy project designed to reduce food losses, improve quality, and stabilise prices.

“NiPHaST is designed to strengthen post-harvest handling and storage systems from the community level upwards, creating an integrated network that connects farmers, cooperatives, and strategic reserves across the country,” he said.

He also announced that operations at the National Strategic Grain Reserve Silos in Zamfara, Katsina, Nasarawa, Adamawa, Niger, Osun, Edo, and Kwara states were being enhanced to support emergency interventions and price stabilisation.

On financing reforms, Kyari said President Tinubu had approved the recapitalisation of the Bank of Agriculture with N1.5tn, alongside a N250bn financing window for smallholder farmers.