President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has consistently demonstrated a clear commitment to transforming Nigeria’s agricultural sector through mechanisation. Each time the president speaks on agriculture, the term “mechanised” features prominently, signaling a deliberate effort to modernise the sector and tap into Nigeria’s vast food production potential.
This dedication was apparent early in his administration. On July 13, 2023, his then spokesman, Dele Alake, announced the government’s declaration of a “state of emergency on food security,” with mechanised agriculture taking centre stage in the outlined strategy. In a similar show of intent, President Tinubu joined Niger State Governor Umar Bago in March 2024 to launch the state’s agricultural mechanisation project, pledging federal support to eradicate hunger.
Further demonstrating this resolve, the president, on Monday last week, inaugurated the Renewed Hope Agricultural Mechanisation Programme at the National Agricultural Seed Council in Sheda, Abuja. At the event, 2,000 agricultural machines were distributed. President Tinubu articulated his vision for Nigeria to become a global agricultural powerhouse—able to supply produce to international markets while ensuring that every citizen has access to affordable and nutritious food.
While these efforts are commendable, they echo similar agricultural ambitions of past administrations. From General Olusegun Obasanjo’s “Operation Feed the Nation” and President Shehu Shagari’s “Green Revolution,” to General Ibrahim Babangida’s Directorate of Food, Roads and Rural Infrastructure, and President Goodluck Jonathan’s plan to make each of the 774 local governments agriculturally specialised—these programmes largely ended in failure. Despite the grand launches and large sums earmarked, results remained elusive.
This raises a critical question: What guarantees that Tinubu’s administration will succeed where others have failed?
A key concern is the nation’s security situation. In the past, these agricultural plans floundered even during times of relative peace. Today, the challenge is greater. Vast swathes of Nigeria’s farmland are now occupied by terrorists, bandits, jihadists, and violent Fulani militants disguising as herders. These criminal elements have made large regions of the country’s rural and agrarian areas ungovernable. With security agencies already stretched thin and struggling to maintain territorial control, it is hard to imagine that meaningful agricultural reform can take root under these conditions.
Mechanised agriculture remains our best hope to fight mass hunger, reverse malnutrition, curb soaring food inflation, and increase our non-oil export revenues. But none of these goals can be achieved without first addressing the root challenge of insecurity.
We commend President Tinubu’s commitment to agricultural transformation, but strongly urge him to prioritise national security as an integral part of his strategy. Specifically, he must activate the Armed Forest Guards (AFG) initiative—training and equipping local youths to work in synergy with the military and police to flush out the criminal elements occupying our farms and forests.
Without first securing the nation’s agricultural heartlands, even the most well-intentioned programmes—including the Renewed Hope Agricultural Mechanisation Programme—risk becoming yet another expensive failure, enriching a few political appointees, civil servants, and contractors at the expense of national progress.
