Abubakar Kyari, Minister, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (FMAFS)
The Federal government has launched what it described as the largest single agricultural mechanisation programme ever undertaken in Africa, unveiling a nationwide deployment of 2,000 tractors and over 9,000 precision implements to boost productivity, expand cultivated land and strengthen food security.
Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the president, flagged off the programme under the Renewed Hope National Agricultural Mechanisation Programme, marking a major policy shift from equipment distribution to structured, service-based mechanisation.
Speaking at the event, Abubakar Kyari, minister of agriculture and food security said the initiative was designed to end Nigeria’s long-standing mechanisation deficit and reposition agriculture as a driver of inclusive growth.
He said Nigeria’s tractor density of 0.27 remains far below the African average of 2.5 and the global benchmark of 3, stressing that the programme would significantly lift productivity, reduce post-harvest losses and shorten production cycles.
Under the framework, tractors will not be allocated for private ownership. Instead, they will be deployed through mechanisation service providers, each expected to service about 600 hectares annually. The model targets coverage of more than 1.5 million hectares and direct support for over 1.2 million farmers each year.
Kyari said the rollout would be executed in phases, beginning with 600 tractors, followed by 750 and then 650, culminating in a nationwide fleet of 2,000 mechanisation assets.
He said the programme integrates financing, policy support and maintenance structures to ensure sustainability, noting that each tractor would come with two years of free service support and be backed by 36 mobile workshops and seven mega mechanisation service centres across the geopolitical zones.
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According to him, plans are also underway to establish a mega tractor assembly plant with capacity to produce between 2,000 and 4,000 units annually, aimed at reducing import dependence and building domestic industrial capacity.
Speaking earlier,Ayodeji Adeyemi, managing director and chief executive officer, Bank of Agriculture, BOA said the programme marked a turning point in Nigeria’s agriculture transformation journey, shifting from asset handouts to a revolving, business-driven mechanisation ecosystem.
He said over 10,000 applications were received for the first phase, reflecting strong market confidence.
Adeyemi said Nigeria currently operates with about 13 tractors per 100 square kilometres of arable land, compared to a global average of 200, while over 95 percent of farmers still rely on manual labour.
He said the programme would deploy tractors through three models. Ten percent would go to agri-businesses and commercial farmers on full ownership terms.
About 1,200 units would be channelled through partnerships with state governments to empower youth and women-led enterprises.
The third model would support established mechanisation service providers with proven operational capacity.
He said financing would be anchored on structured leasing, pay-as-you-use repayment models, and digital monitoring systems to ensure transparency, asset protection and financial sustainability.
Adeyemi said each tractor would be fitted with IoT tracking devices to monitor location, usage, fuel consumption and maintenance schedules, while maintenance hubs would provide spare parts, training and technical support.
He added that a $7 million catalytic investment by development partners would finance initial deployment, with full recovery expected within two years, after which the programme would be sustained through internally generated funds.
The minister said the mechanisation drive aligns with the administration’s food security and economic diversification agenda, adding that a N250 billion wet-season financing programme had also been mobilised to support one million smallholder farmers cultivating one hectare each in 2026.
He said women would remain central to the programme, noting that they account for about 70 percent of agricultural production activities, while youth entrepreneurs would be prioritised to drive rural job creation.
The programme, officials said, is expected to deepen productivity, strengthen value chains, reduce import dependence and reposition agriculture as a pillar of Nigeria’s economic resilience.
