The Federal Government has unveiled the National Agricultural Mechanisation Policy and National Agricultural Mechanisation Investment Strategy, targeting the production of between 2,000 and 4,000 tractors annually through a proposed mega tractor assembly plant.
The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, disclosed this on Wednesday in Abuja at the High-Level National Policy Dialogue on Agricultural Mechanisation.
Kyari said the two policy instruments would provide the framework for transforming Nigeria from an agriculture-dependent economy into a food-sovereign nation driven by technology, investment and mechanisation.
He said the government’s vision was to move the country “from agricultural potential to agricultural powerhouse; from mechanisation deficit to mechanisation leadership; and from food vulnerability to food sovereignty.”
According to him, mechanisation goes beyond tractors to encompass land preparation, planting, irrigation, crop protection, harvesting, processing, storage, logistics, precision agriculture, digital technologies, financing, insurance, maintenance and after-sales services.
The minister said the government was therefore pursuing a “Mechanisation-as-a-Service” model that would enable farmers to access modern agricultural technology when and where it is needed, rather than focusing solely on equipment ownership.
Kyari disclosed that under the Renewed Hope National Agricultural Mechanisation Programme (RH-NAMP), the Federal Government had commenced the procurement and deployment of 2,000 tractors, alongside more than 9,000 assorted implements and spare parts.
He described the intervention as the largest single agricultural mechanisation programme undertaken in Africa, stressing that the success of the initiative would be measured by the productivity, accessibility, maintenance and sustainability of the equipment.
The minister said the proposed tractor assembly plant would reduce Nigeria’s dependence on imported agricultural machinery, promote local manufacturing, create jobs and establish a sustainable mechanisation economy.
He called on investors, youths and women to take advantage of the opportunities in the sector, saying the government was seeking partners to build an enduring agricultural technology and services ecosystem.
“Agriculture is no longer a symbol of neglect. It has transitioned into a domain of enterprise, technology and wealth creation,” Kyari said.
He cited Borno State as an example of state-level commitment to agricultural development, noting that Governor Babagana Zulum had provided 200 truckloads of fertiliser to farmers and facilitated the development of more than a dozen solar-powered irrigation systems to extend the farming season.
Kyari also commended TracTrac Mechanisation Services Limited for training thousands of young Nigerians as mechanisation service providers and deploying small-scale tractors to smallholder farmers.
He explained that under the new framework, the Federal Government would provide policy, standards and coordination, while state governments would support land access, infrastructure and implementation.
He added that the private sector would invest and provide services, financial institutions would develop financing and risk-sharing instruments, while development partners and research institutions would provide technical support.
The minister said the policy framework also provides for the inauguration of an Implementation Taskforce to drive its execution.
Speaking at the event, Governor Zulum commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda in agriculture, saying the focus on food sovereignty and economic growth would transform the sector.
He said the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security’s mechanisation programme had the potential to revolutionise Nigeria’s agricultural ecosystem.
Also speaking, the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi, said the mechanisation initiative would improve farmers’ livelihoods and increase food production.
The Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Dr Marcus O. Ogunbiyi, said Nigeria must address the longstanding challenges of inadequate machinery, high levels of drudgery, limited access to appropriate technology and insufficient investment across the agricultural value chain.
Ogunbiyi stressed that mechanisation was not simply about tractors and implements but also about food security, productivity, rural prosperity, youth employment, women’s economic empowerment and private-sector investment.
“A tractor without an operator is an idle asset. A machine without maintenance is a depreciating investment. Equipment without finance cannot reach the farmer,” he said.
The Permanent Secretary said the government’s objective was to establish a national mechanisation ecosystem connecting machinery with finance, operators, maintenance, spare parts, digital systems, research, standards, farmers and markets.
He identified machinery assembly and leasing, maintenance, spare-parts manufacturing, digital fleet management, operator training, irrigation, post-harvest technology and agro-processing as major investment opportunities.
He acknowledged the contributions of development partners, particularly the Food and Agriculture Organisation, as well as the National Centre for Agricultural Mechanisation, Institute for Agricultural Research, Nigerian Institution of Agricultural Engineers, Standards Organisation of Nigeria and TracTrac Mechanisation Services Limited in developing the policy frameworks.
The Chief Executive Officer of TracTrac MSL, Mr Godson Ohuruogu, said the dialogue marked a shift from years of discussions on agricultural mechanisation to the implementation of a national policy and investment strategy.
Ohuruogu said TracTrac, through its operations and the ISSAM Project with the Mastercard Foundation, had reached more than 500,000 farmers, catalysed over N2 billion in investment, trained more than 6,000 youths, women and persons with disabilities, created 3,000 jobs and established 567 cooperatives.
He said the success of the policy should ultimately be measured by its impact on farmers, particularly their ability to access timely and affordable mechanisation services.
The highlight of the event was the unveiling of the National Agricultural Mechanisation Policy and National Agricultural Mechanisation Investment Strategy by Governor Zulum.