Nigeria’s agricultural transformation agenda has received a major boost after the African Development Bank Group approved a $200 million loan to scale up strategic investments aimed at increasing food production, strengthening agricultural value chains, and reducing food imports.

The financing will support the second phase of the Federal Government’s National Agricultural Growth Scheme – Agro-Pocket (NAGS-AP), a flagship initiative designed to modernise input distribution systems, promote climate-smart agriculture, and empower smallholder farmers across the country.

Boosting Domestic Food Production

Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, continues to grapple with high food import bills driven by gaps in domestic wheat and rice production. The new AfDB funding aims to:

• Increase wheat production fivefold
• Raise rice output by 20 percent
• Expand crop insurance access to shield farmers from climate shocks

The initiative focuses heavily on distributing climate-resilient, high-yield seed varieties and locally tailored fertiliser blends, while strengthening extension services and deploying digital platforms to improve farmer productivity.

Building on Proven Success

Phase One of NAGS-AP introduced an ICT-driven input distribution system connecting over 600 agro-dealers nationwide. During the 2023/2024 dry season, the programme supported cultivation of 118,000 hectares of wheat, tripling national wheat output to approximately 500,000 metric tons in 2024.

To date, around 650,000 smallholder farmers cultivating wheat, rice, maize, cassava, sorghum and millet have benefited.

Why It Matters

Agriculture accounts for 38% of Nigeria’s workforce and 25.2% of GDP, yet productivity remains constrained by weak irrigation systems, soil degradation, limited mechanisation and land tenure challenges.

The four-year project, set to begin in March 2026, aligns with AfDB President Sidi Ould Tah’s strategy of leveraging technology, youth inclusion and climate resilience to drive inclusive agricultural growth across Africa.

For Nigeria, reducing food imports is not just an economic priority — it is a national food security imperative.