The federal government has called on investors, financial institutions and development partners to collaborate with the country to unlock its agricultural potential and build a resilient food system.
This was disclosed in a statement on Monday by the head, department of information for the ministry, Ikemefuna Ezeaja.
According to the statement, Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, speaking during the Nigeria-United Kingdom Investment Forum in London, England, recently, highlighted Nigeria’s diverse agro-ecological zones and competitive production capabilities.
Mr Kyari stated that agriculture employs nearly 70 per cent of the country’s labour force, contributes over 24 per cent to Gross Domestic Products (GDP) and is a critical driver of inclusive growth, rural livelihoods, women and youth employment
He explained that Nigeria possesses the natural conditions required to support a broad spectrum of agricultural value chains like rice, maize and cassava, cocoa, sesame, sorghum as well as horticultural crops.
According to him, the commodities consumed across global markets can be produced competitively within Nigeria’s diverse agricultural landscape.
He said the impact of climate change, which poses significant risks to nations worldwide, has in Nigeria manifested in prolonged droughts, erratic rainfall patterns, flooding, and desertification, threatening agricultural productivity and food security, and underscoring the urgent need to transition to climate-resilient agriculture.
He added that to achieve this transition, a significant financing gap remains as current investment levels fall far short of what is required to build resilient food systems, deploy climate-smart technologies and scale innovation across agricultural value chains.
“While public financing remains essential, unlocking the scale of investment required will depend on stronger participation from private capital and development finance partners. Access to finance is a major constraint for farmers across Nigeria, significantly limiting productivity across the sector.
“Despite the prevalence of credit schemes across the country, total credit accessible by farmers is still significantly limited, reaching 3.4 trillion as at April 2025. Whilst this value may look significant, it is less than 4 per cent of the contribution of agriculture to the country’s GDP.” Mr Kyari said
The minister revealed that to address these challenges, President Bola Tinubu declared a national state of emergency on food security in July 2023, shortly after taking office.
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A year later, Vice President Kashim Shettima inaugurated the Presidential Food Systems Coordinating Unit (PFSCU) to ensure alignment of interventions across all three tiers of government.
He mentioned that the federal government has also initiated several programmes, like the distribution of solar-powered irrigation pumps to smallholder farmers to promote all-season farming and improve water efficiency.
He expressed the federal government’s commitment to creating an enabling environment for investors, with initiatives aimed at strengthening agricultural value chains and promoting sustainable agriculture.
He emphasised that Nigeria has the potential, the market, and the policy direction to drive this transformation, contributing not only to national food security but also to strengthening resilient food systems globally.
He appealed to the investors for robust, stronger private sector and international investment to bridge Nigeria’s agricultural financing gap and support climate-resilient farming.
