Favour Ishember, Abuja
The Federal Government says the Renewed Hope Tertiary Agricultural and Entrepreneurship Programme is a practical step towards delivering President Bola Tinubu’s food security agenda by transforming dormant agricultural land in tertiary institutions into commercially viable farming hubs.
Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, said the initiative will tackle years of underutilised farmland in universities, polytechnics and colleges of education by providing the financing, machinery, technical expertise and institutional backing needed to make agriculture profitable and sustainable.
According to him, each participating institution is expected to commit about 1,000 hectares of land to the programme, although schools with smaller landholdings may still qualify if they present strong and bankable business proposals.
Dr Alausa disclosed that every participating institution will establish a limited liability company to partner with the Bank of Agriculture, which will provide between ₦1 billion and ₦2 billion in financing for agricultural production and essential farm inputs.
He explained that the programme also builds on earlier Federal Government interventions through the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), which approved grants of ₦1 billion for some institutions and ₦2 billion for others. He added that the Federal Ministry of Education has set aside ₦20 billion in its capital budget to support 20 tertiary institutions under the agricultural development scheme.
On mechanisation, the minister said each participating institution will have access to 10 tractors at subsidised rates through the government’s agricultural mechanisation programme. The support package will also include improved seedlings, irrigation facilities, water pumps, fertilisers, farm implements and technical expertise to enhance productivity and efficient farm operations.
He added that produce aggregators will be engaged to purchase harvested crops, while measures will be introduced to reduce post-harvest losses and ensure farmers have a ready market for their produce.
Dr Alausa stressed that the programme is not only aimed at increasing food production but also at building a sustainable agricultural value chain, with processing and other agro-allied businesses forming the next phase of development.
He said the initiative would open up employment and entrepreneurial opportunities for Nigeria’s growing youth population, allowing students, unemployed graduates, alumni, academic and non-academic staff, as well as members of host communities, to participate in commercial farming under the guidance of lecturers and agricultural experts. According to him, participants will gain practical experience while earning from the farms.
The minister projected that the programme could attract investments worth trillions of naira in the coming years, while repositioning tertiary institutions as centres of agricultural innovation, commercial production and enterprise development instead of relying mainly on government funding.
Earlier, Dr Alausa reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to advancing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda on food security, announcing that 40 tertiary institutions will benefit from the Renewed Hope Tertiary Agricultural and Entrepreneurship Programme.
He made the disclosure during a meeting with heads of the selected institutions and the management of the Bank of Agriculture, where discussions focused on implementing the programme designed to harness more than 500,000 hectares of land across tertiary institutions for commercial agriculture, research and enterprise development.
Vice-Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Professor Adamu Ahmed, welcomed the initiative, describing it as a timely intervention that would strengthen the institution’s agricultural research and production capacity. He said ABU’s existing agricultural ecosystem, including the Institute of Agricultural Research, the National Agricultural Extension and Research Liaison Services and the Faculty of Agriculture, would benefit from the financing and technical support needed to convert research into commercial production while creating opportunities for students.
Similarly, Rector of Federal Polytechnic Oko, Dr Chioma Irene Awuzie, commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Minister of Education for the initiative, saying it would enable the institution to maximise its available land through mechanised farming, increase agricultural production and ensure productive utilisation of its land resources.
Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Bank of Agriculture, Ayo Sotinrin, described the programme as a strategic platform for sustainable investment in tertiary institution agriculture. He said the bank would provide financing, market linkages and support for commercialising agricultural research, boosting productivity and creating opportunities for students and unemployed graduates. He added that participating institutions would strengthen national food supply while generating revenue from agricultural investments.
Reaffirming the ministry’s commitment to the initiative, Dr Alausa assured that the Federal Ministry of Education would continue working with the Bank of Agriculture, relevant government agencies and participating institutions to ensure successful implementation.
He maintained that the ministry remains committed to translating President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda into measurable outcomes through higher agricultural productivity, stronger institutional capacity, youth empowerment and sustainable economic opportunities, with the ultimate goal of making Nigeria’s tertiary institutions major drivers of agricultural transformation and national food security.
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