Nigeria has presented a comprehensive 10-year Strategic Action Plan (2026–2035) aimed at revolutionising its agricultural sector, with Vice President Kashim Shettima noting that youth-driven innovation will be pivotal to the nation’s food systems transformation.
The initiative aligns with Nigeria’s commitment to the Comprehensive Africa Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP) Kampala Declaration (2026–2036), a continent-wide effort by African Heads of State to bolster food and nutrition security.
Speaking on Tuesday at a high-level dialogue during the United Nations Food Systems Summit Stocktake (UNFSS+4) in Addis Ababa, Shettima underscored the critical importance of investing in young people to foster innovation and resilience throughout food systems.
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“A nation that is prepared for the future is not known by the promises it makes but by the place it gives to its youth in shaping those promises.
“To see African youths leading the charge in this essential sector speaks more eloquently than any speech,” Shettima stated.
He detailed that Nigeria has already established an Agricultural Sector Working Group and a Technical Committee to oversee the national implementation of the Kampala Declaration and develop the 10-Year Strategic Action Plan.
This plan, he explained, is designed to harmonise national and subnational priorities, encourage public-private partnerships, and deeply integrate youth engagement at all levels.
He also highlighted the Federal Government, FG’s, recapitalisation of the Bank of Agriculture with ₦1.5 trillion ($1 billion) to fuel Nigeria’s Youth Agricultural Revolution.
This initiative provides loans of up to ₦1 million to young farmers and agri-groups nationwide.
“This is not charity. It is strategic inclusion. It is resilience engineered into policy,” Shettima said.
Shettima listed several ongoing projects, including Nigeria’s collaboration with the Netherlands, CGIAR, and IITA under the Youth in Agribusiness Initiative.
This programme targets 10,000 young individuals, with a significant proportion (40–50%) being women, across innovative hubs specialising in horticulture, poultry, aquaculture, and cassava processing.
He also pointed to investments in mechanisation, greenhouse expansion, and irrigation systems, as well as the $1.1 billion Green Imperative Project with Brazil, aimed at enhancing year-round agricultural productivity and value chain efficiency.
“We launched the first 2,000 tractors in a 70-million-dollar investment, targeting over 550,000 hectares of land and reaching more than 550,000 farming households. In partnership with John Deere, we are deploying 10,000 tractors over five years,” he said.
Nigeria, he reaffirmed, continues to advocate for increased investment in value addition and agro-processing to curb the export of raw commodities and strengthen local economies.
The forthcoming 10-Year Action Plan, he added, will emphasise training and mentorship in agro-technology and agribusiness, supported by a robust monitoring and evaluation framework.
“This is not a sprint. It is a generational relay that requires collective action, strategic partnerships, and an unwavering commitment to shared responsibility,” he noted.
Separately, Shettima also addressed the Plenary Session on Transforming Food Systems in Complex Settings.
He disclosed that Nigeria has allocated $538.05 million to the initial phase of the Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones (SAPZ) programme, a flagship initiative designed to boost agricultural productivity, improve rural livelihoods, and accelerate agro-industrialisation.
This programme, implemented in partnership with the African Development Bank, the International Fund for Agricultural Development, and the Islamic Development Bank, is projected to attract $1 billion in total investments by 2027, reduce post-harvest losses by 80%, and has already created over 785,000 jobs across targeted regions.
Shettima reiterated that African youth are essential to the continent’s agri-food future, emphasising the need to fully leverage this vital asset.
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He reaffirmed the FG’s dedication to combating food insecurity, noting that President Bola Tinubu’s administration has declared a State of Emergency on Food Security, reactivated over 500,000 hectares of arable land, deployed strategic food reserves, and expanded access to seeds and extension services.
He stressed the importance of security sector reforms to ensure farmers can safely access their land and continue food production in rural communities.
Additionally, he called for international cooperation to recharge the Lake Chad Basin, expand sustainable irrigation systems, and establish a national farm database.
Shettima also advocated for proactive measures against climate shocks, emergency school feeding programs in conflict-affected areas, and resilience-building initiatives to ensure long-term stability.
“Food security is the trust anchor of peace,” he stated.
Also speaking at the summit, United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed highlighted the worsening global food insecurity, noting that ‘over 37 million children under five who faced acute malnutrition this year are almost the entire population of Canada.’
She urged for transformative solutions over short-term interventions, commending leaders like Tinubu who are embedding resilience into national strategies by combining global, digital, and traditional knowledge to create inclusive and sustainable food systems.
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“We need coordination as a people and not just bureaucracies. Bureaucracies are important; we need strong public institutions, but our efforts must translate into impact in people’s lives,” Mohammed added.
Other speakers at the summit included World Food Programme Executive Director Cindy McCain, Deputy Prime Minister of Somalia Salah Jama, and Moubarack Roubo from Chad’s Ministry of Agricultural Production and Industrialisation.
