The Federal Government Monday declared a national emergency on food security, emphasising the urgent need for expanded irrigation infrastructure and collaborative water resource management across the country.
President Bola Tinubu, represented by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, made the declaration while inaugurating the 6th African Regional Conference on Irrigation and Drainage in Abuja.
He urged African nations to adopt innovative and sustainable approaches to overcome the continent’s pressing challenges in irrigation and water management.
The president also highlighted that Nigeria possesses over 3.1 million hectares of irrigable land, primarily located around strategic river basins such as the Niger and Benue. Unlocking the potential of these lands, he noted, is critical to achieving national food self-sufficiency.
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Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Joseph Utsev, spoke on recent strides made under the Transforming Irrigation Management in Nigeria (TRIMING) project. He reported the establishment of Water Users Associations, farmer management centers, and the development of market linkages for essential value chains such as rice and tomato production.
According to the minister, over 153,000 hectares of irrigable land have already been developed by the River Basin Development Authorities, with efforts underway to partially commercialize these authorities to attract private sector investment and improve efficiency.
The declaration comes just weeks after the BusinessDay Agriculture Conference on Food Security, held on March 27, 2025, where stakeholders stressed the need to treat food security as a matter of national importance.
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Kabir Ibrahim, National President of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), warned that food security cannot be achieved without resolving the nation’s deep-rooted infrastructural gaps and insecurity. “We cannot talk about food systems without power, transportation, and security. These are the backbone of agricultural productivity,” he emphasized.
Echoing this sentiment, BusinessDay Publisher Frank Aigbogun expressed concern over the growing number of Nigerians experiencing food insecurity, stating, “With Nigeria’s vast arable land, we have the resources to achieve food security,” he stated.
According to recent reports by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), an estimated 33.1 million Nigerians are projected to experience severe food insecurity in 2025—a sharp rise from around 25 million in 2023.
Experts warn that to reverse this alarming trend, Nigeria must embrace a comprehensive and multi-pronged strategy to address the root causes of food insecurity and build long-term resilience in the food system.
