The World Bank has approved a $500 million credit facility through the International Development Association to support Nigeria’s agricultural sector, with a strong focus on smallholder farmers, value chain development, and food security.
The funding will be used for the Nigeria Sustainable Agricultural Value Chains for Growth Project (AGROW), a programme designed to improve farm productivity, strengthen links between farmers and markets, and create jobs across the country.
According to details released by the bank, the project aims to boost the productivity of smallholder farmers, improve agricultural value chains, and enhance food and nutrition security nationwide.
Despite being Nigeria’s largest employer, agriculture continues to face major challenges, including low productivity, poor access to quality inputs, climate-related shocks, and weak market connections. These issues have limited the sector’s ability to generate sufficient income and affordable food.
The AGROW programme is expected to address these gaps by supporting agribusinesses that source produce directly from smallholder farmers. It will operate through a results-based matching grant system and focus on areas such as aggregation, post-harvest handling, agro-processing, and market access.
Key crops targeted under the initiative include rice, maize, cassava, and soybeans.
The project will also strengthen agricultural research and extension services, while expanding access to improved and climate-resilient seeds. In addition, it plans to establish a national digital farm and farmer registry to improve data collection and planning.
Farmers are expected to benefit from digital advisory services, including localised weather updates and climate information to help improve yields and resilience.
Efforts will also be made to improve seed and fertiliser regulatory systems, increase the supply of high-quality seeds, and encourage greater private sector participation in agricultural input production.
The programme places strong emphasis on inclusion, with women and young people expected to play a key role in its implementation.
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The World Bank’s Country Director for Nigeria, Mathew Verghis, described the initiative as a major step toward transforming the agricultural sector. He noted that the project could benefit up to one million smallholder farmers, attract significant private investment, and improve crop yields.
The six-year project, scheduled to run from 2026 to 2032, is also expected to draw an additional $220 million in private agribusiness investment.
Overall, the initiative aligns with Nigeria’s broader goals of increasing agricultural productivity, creating employment, improving food security, and transitioning small-scale farming into more sustainable and commercially viable agribusinesses.
