Minister hails Kaduna agro-investments, assures farmers of support

Abubakar Kyari, Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, has expressed satisfaction with the level of agricultural investments and processing activities in Kaduna State.

Kyari spoke on Wednesday after inspecting facilities at Olam Agri, Tomato Jos and the Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zone (SAPZ) as part of the 47th National Council on Agriculture and Food Security (NCAFS).

He said the facilities demonstrated Nigeria’s growing capacity in crop production, value addition and quality control.

“It’s impressive what we’ve seen from crop production to processing,” he said. “We also saw a quality assurance office being built by Afreximbank to certify Nigerian produce for local and export markets.”

Kyari noted that more Nigerians — particularly youth and women — were investing in agriculture, contrary to claims that investors were reluctant to engage in the sector.

Read Also: 2027: Jandor launches grassroots structure to drive Tinubu’s re-election campaign

“There is rising interest in agriculture. We met a young lady managing a rice mill with women outgrowers — this shows strong participation and confidence,” he added.

The minister said the Federal Government was working to tackle high input costs and restock strategic food reserves to boost production and support farmers’ incomes.

“Mr President is balancing the welfare of citizens and farmers. We are tackling input prices and will soon restock the reserves to enable all-year-round production,” he said.

Kyari also acknowledged concerns raised by Tomato Jos over declining sales caused by smuggling, assuring that the matter was receiving attention at the presidential level.

“The Economic Management Team has noted the issue of smuggling and illegal imports, and it is being addressed to protect local producers,” he said.

On liquid fertiliser, Kyari explained that the product required careful policy management due to security sensitivities.

“Liquid fertiliser is a security-sensitive material. Government will ensure policies that protect the public while supporting farmers,” he said.

Kyari reaffirmed the government’s commitment to strengthening partnerships and advancing food security through sustainable agricultural development.