The minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari said that the ministry was building strong partnerships with international organisations and private investors to accelerate agricultural transformation and food security.
The minister stated this during a high-level panel discussion at the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations Hand-in-Hand Sahel Regional Initiative in Rome.
The session focused on mobilising capacity, partnerships and investment to reshape agrifood systems for greater resilience and productivity.
According to a statement issued by the ministry’s head of information department, Ezeaja Ikemefuna Kyari, he emphasised that strategic public–private collaboration remains central to unlocking the full potential of the region’s farmers, processors, and agribusinesses.
He said such collaboration would drive innovation, strengthen institutions, improve financing systems, and build the enabling environment needed to deliver measurable results in food security and job creation.
The minister highlighted several ongoing reforms designed to boost private sector participation in Nigeria’s agrifood sector. Among these is the National Agrifood System Investment Plan (NASIP), currently being upgraded into a National public–private investment portal to showcase bankable opportunities in mechanisation, irrigation, storage, processing, logistics, and digital agriculture.
He also mentioned efforts to streamline investment incentives, including targeted tax reliefs, import duty waivers, and risk-sharing facilities developed in partnership with global financial institutions. In addition, the government is scaling up the Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones (SAPZ) from eight to 27 states to provide integrated infrastructure to reduce costs for agro-processors.
Another key intervention, Kyari noted, is the Nigeria Postharvest Systems Transformation Programme (NiPHaST), which seeks to cut the N3.5 trillion lost annually to postharvest inefficiencies through modern storage, cold chain, and warehousing systems.
He said, ‘’The ministry will be committed to hard, practical work of aligning policy with possibility; of turning investment promises into concrete projects that create jobs, feed families, and empower communities; of ensuring that the Hand-in-Hand Initiative delivers measurable, lasting transformation for Nigeria’s agrifood systems’’.
“Under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Nigeria is committed to creating an enabling environment where investors can thrive alongside farmers.
We will work hand in hand with FAO, IFAD, AfDB, the World Bank Group, ECOWAS, and the private sector to turn investment promises into concrete projects that feed families, create jobs, and strengthen food sovereignty,” he added.
