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From Isaac Anumihe, Abuja
In spite of the herders/ farmers clashes in the North East and parts of the country, the Federal Government, at the weekend, disclosed that Nigeria has over 42 million agricultural households, predominantly smallholder family farms.
Speaking at the 2nd Biannual Meeting of the Agrifood Systems Working Group (ASWG), convened by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security in Abuja, Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Atiku Bagudu described the smallholder farmers as the backbone of the nation’s food system.
He said that supporting these households in becoming more productive and profitable remains critical to ensuring food security, generating surplus production, reducing poverty, and stimulating economic growth.
“The success of Nigeria’s food system depends on empowering our millions of farming households with the support, technology, financing, and market opportunities they need to produce more efficiently and improve their incomes,” he said.
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The minister noted that President Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda recognises the strategic importance of agriculture, citing key institutional reforms, including the establishment of the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development and the integration of fisheries into the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, to strengthen specialised interventions across the agricultural value chain.
He also highlighted ongoing government initiatives to de-risk agriculture, including increased support for the National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF) and the National Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA), to expand agricultural financing, improve land development, and promote climate-resilient farming practices.
Bagudu emphasised that agriculture must no longer be seen solely as the responsibility of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, describing it as a sector that requires coordinated contributions from science, technology, finance, women, youth, research institutions, and the private sector.
He underscored the need to modernise agricultural production through innovation and scientific research, noting that improved technology would increase productivity and profitability and attract greater investment into the sector.
