WorldStage— Nigeria’s Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, has reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to advancing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda on food security, with 40 tertiary institutions set to benefit from the Renewed Hope Tertiary Agricultural and Entrepreneurship Programme, designed to transform underutilised institutional farmlands into productive agricultural hubs.
Alausa disclosed this during a meeting with the heads of 40 tertiary institutions and the management of the Bank of Agriculture to discuss the implementation and operationalisation of the programme, which seeks to harness over 500,000 hectares of land across tertiary institutions for commercial agricultural production, research and enterprise development.
The Minister described the initiative as a practical demonstration of President Tinubu’s commitment to food security, a key pillar of the Renewed Hope Agenda. He explained that the programme would address the longstanding underutilisation of agricultural land in tertiary institutions by providing the financing, machinery, technical expertise and institutional support required to make farming commercially viable and sustainable.
According to him, participating universities, polytechnics and colleges of education are expected to provide approximately 1,000 hectares of land each, although institutions with smaller land-holdings may also qualify based on the strength and viability of their business proposals.
Under the partnership arrangement, each participating institution will establish a limited liability company to work with the Bank of Agriculture, which will provide between ₦1 billion and ₦2 billion in financing to support agricultural production and related inputs.
Dr Alausa further disclosed that the programme builds on earlier Federal Government interventions through the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), which had approved funding support for selected institutions, with allocations of ₦1 billion for some institutions and ₦2 billion for others.
He added that the Federal Ministry of Education had also made provision of ₦20 billion in its capital budget to support 20 tertiary institutions under the agricultural development initiative.
On agricultural mechanisation, the Minister explained that participating institutions would have access to 10 tractors each at significantly reduced costs through the government’s agricultural mechanisation initiative.
The support package would also include modern seedlings, farm implements, irrigation equipment, water pumps, fertilisers and technical expertise to improve productivity and ensure efficient farm operations.
To guarantee a sustainable market for agricultural produce, arrangements will also be made with produce aggregators to purchase harvested crops, while measures will be put in place to minimise post-harvest losses.
He emphasised that the programme goes beyond increasing food production, as it is designed to establish a sustainable agricultural value chain, with processing and other agro-allied activities expected to form the next phase of development.
The Minister noted that agriculture and agro-allied businesses offer significant opportunities for employment, particularly among Nigeria’s youthful population.
He explained that the programme would create opportunities for students, unemployed graduates and university alumni to participate in commercial farming, alongside academic and non-academic staff and members of host communities.
Their participation, under the supervision of lecturers and agricultural experts, would provide practical experience, promote entrepreneurship and enable them to benefit from the economic returns generated by the farms.
Dr Alausa projected that the initiative could attract investment running into trillions of naira over the coming years, while repositioning tertiary institutions as centres of agricultural innovation, commercial production and enterprise development.
He described the programme as an important step towards making universities and other tertiary institutions active contributors to Nigeria’s agricultural economy rather than relying solely on government funding for their operations.
The Vice-Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Professor Adamu Ahmed, welcomed the initiative, describing it as a timely opportunity to harness the institution’s extensive agricultural research and production capacity.
He highlighted the university’s established agricultural ecosystem, which includes the Institute of Agricultural Research, the National Agricultural Extension and Research Liaison Services and the Faculty of Agriculture, noting that the partnership would provide the financing and technical support needed to translate research into commercial production, strengthen agricultural capacity and create opportunities for students.
Similarly, the Rector of Federal Polytechnic Oko, Dr Chioma Irene Awuzie, expressed appreciation to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Minister of Education for the initiative.
She noted that the programme would enable the institution to maximise the use of its available land through mechanised farming, strengthen agricultural production and ensure that its land resources are put to productive use.
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Bank of Agriculture, Ayo Sotinrin, described the programme as an opportunity to channel sustainable financing into the agricultural potential of tertiary institutions.
He explained that the Bank would support participating institutions with financing and market linkages, while helping to commercialise agricultural research, improve productivity and create opportunities for students and unemployed graduates.
He added that the initiative would enable universities to contribute to food supply beyond their immediate communities while generating revenue from their agricultural investments.
Reaffirming the Federal Ministry of Education’s commitment to the successful implementation of the programme, Dr Alausa assured that the Ministry would continue to work closely with the Bank of Agriculture, relevant government agencies and tertiary institutions to ensure that the initiative delivers its intended objectives.
He stressed that the Ministry would remain focused on translating President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda into measurable results through increased agricultural productivity, stronger institutional capacity, youth empowerment and sustainable economic opportunities, affirming that the ultimate goal is to position Nigeria’s tertiary institutions as key drivers of the country’s agricultural transformation and contribute to building a food-secure and prosperous nation.
