The Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Dr. Marcus Olaniyi Ogunbiyi, has described the Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones (SAPZ) Programme as a strategic model for agricultural industrialisation, food systems transformation, and sustainable economic development in Nigeria.
Ogunbiyi stated this during the meeting of the Federal Inter-Agency Technical Committee for the SAPZ Programme, held on Thursday in Abuja.
According to him, the SAPZ initiative is designed to establish integrated agro-industrial hubs equipped with essential infrastructure such as roads, electricity, water supply, storage facilities, logistics systems, and processing centres located near high agricultural production areas.
He explained that the programme is expected to reduce post-harvest losses, improve productivity, attract private sector investment, create jobs for youths and women, strengthen food security, increase rural incomes, and drive inclusive economic growth across participating states.
The Permanent Secretary noted that the initiative would transform Nigeria’s agricultural landscape by shifting the country from the export of raw agricultural commodities to agro-industrial processing, value addition, and market-driven agricultural development.
He described the SAPZ Programme as one of the Federal Government’s most strategic agricultural and economic transformation initiatives, jointly financed by the Federal Government of Nigeria, the African Development Bank, International Fund for Agricultural Development, and the Islamic Development Bank, in partnership with participating state governments and private sector stakeholders.
Ogunbiyi said the programme presents an opportunity to reposition agriculture as a business-driven and industrialised sector capable of driving national development, generating employment, and enhancing Nigeria’s competitiveness in regional and global markets.
He added that the initiative aligns with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration and supports the government’s goals of achieving food security, economic diversification, import substitution, and rural industrialisation.
He reaffirmed the ministry’s commitment to providing leadership, policy coordination, and an enabling environment for the successful implementation of the programme, stressing that strong institutional collaboration and sustained inter-agency coordination are critical to achieving its objectives.
Ogunbiyi urged members of the technical committee to provide the highest level of technical expertise and institutional support, while commending development partners and collaborating institutions for their continued support for Nigeria’s agricultural transformation agenda.
Earlier, the Director of the Federal Department of Development Partners Projects, Dr. Mrs. Iluromi Adebola, said the SAPZ Programme remains a strategic intervention aimed at transforming Nigeria’s agricultural sector through value addition, agro-industrialisation, private sector investment, and rural economic development.
She said the committee’s role is crucial in ensuring effective coordination, policy alignment, and timely resolution of implementation challenges, adding that its deliberations would further strengthen inter-agency collaboration and advance sustainable agricultural transformation in the country.
Also speaking, the National Programme Coordinator, Dr. Kabir Yusuf, described SAPZ as a cross-cutting platform designed to attract private sector investment into value-added agro-processing to boost food security, create jobs, increase export earnings, reduce rural poverty, and enhance agriculture’s contribution to Nigeria’s GDP.
He added that the programme’s development objective is to support inclusive and sustainable agro-industrial development, while helping diversify Nigeria’s economy through agriculture and reducing the country’s food import bill.