At dawn in Imobi, a sleepy community in Ijebu East Local Government Area of Ogun State, Adewale used to wake with a familiar uncertainty-whether the day’s labour on his cassava farm would be enough to feed his family, let alone change their fortunes. For years, survival was the only goal. Then came cotton. Today, the same hands that once harvested barely enough now tend to rows of soft white bolls stretching across fields that were once overlooked. ‘This one is different because it gives hope,’ he says quietly, almost as if still testing the reality of it.
It is from stories like Adewale’s that Imobi is beginning to rewrite its place on Nigeria’s agricultural map. Long absent from national conversations, the quiet farming town is emerging as an unlikely symbol of a cotton-led revival-one that is challenging decades of missed opportunities in a country richly endowed to feed itself, yet historically slow to fully harness that potential.
For decades, Nigeria’s agricultural narrative has been defined by paradox. Vast arable land, favourable climate, and a large labour force coexist with persistent food insecurity and underutilised value chains. Before the discovery of crude oil, the country thrived on cash crops-cocoa in the West, groundnuts in the North, palm produce in the East-generating foreign exchange and sustaining livelihoods. Cotton, too, played a pivotal role, feeding a once-thriving textile industry that employed hundreds of thousands.
But that ecosystem gradually collapsed under the weight of policy inconsistency, import dependence, and neglect of local industries. Ginneries shut down, textile mills went silent, and farmers like Adewale turned to crops that guaranteed quicker, albeit smaller, returns. Cotton became a relic of a more productive past. What is happening in Imobi suggests a deliberate attempt to reverse that decline. Across several hectares, farmers are now cultivating cotton under a structured system that links production to markets, finance and technical support.
The shift from subsistence farming to a structured, market-linked cotton value chain did not happen overnight. It is the result of a carefully coordinated intervention led by Ms. Ololade Adeneye, an entrepreneur whose decision to return from the United Kingdom has become central to this unfolding story. With a background in fashion and sustainable textile design, and an MBA from the University of West London, Adeneye approached agriculture not merely as cultivation, but as an integrated value chain. Through her organisation, House of Dorcas Integrated Services (HDI), she introduced a model that goes beyond planting-one that incorporates farmer education, input supply, aggregation and long-term plans for local processing. ‘I didn’t come back just to farm,’ she explains during a field visit. ‘I came back to rebuild a system-to connect what we grow here to what we wear and export.’ Her intervention aligns with broader federal efforts to reposition agriculture, particularly through the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme introduced under former President Muhammadu Buhari. Designed to provide smallholder farmers with access to credit, inputs and off-take arrangements, the programme has recorded mixed outcomes nationwide. In Imobi, however, it has provided critical early-stage support, enabling farmers to take the risk of switching to cotton.
The impact is already visible. Farmers operate in clusters, benefiting from shared knowledge and economies of scale. Women, traditionally confined to small-scale trading, are increasingly integrated into cooperative structures tied to the cotton value chain. Youth participation-long a challenge in agriculture-is also beginning to improve, driven by the promise of more stable returns. Yet, beyond the numbers and policy frameworks, the real transformation is psychological. There is a shift from subsistence to enterprise, from uncertainty to cautious optimism.
Still, the road ahead is far from smooth. Reviving cotton at scale requires more than successful harvests. It demands functional ginneries, reliable power supply, efficient transportation networks, and, critically, a resurgence of Nigeria’s textile industry to absorb raw materials. Without these, the risk remains that farmers will produce what the system cannot sustainably process or profit from.
From lost billions to new possibilities
For the record, Nigeria-Africa’s most populous nation-cultivates long-staple cotton, a premium variety prized for its superior fibre quality and versatility across textile applications. This endowment positions the country to serve both domestic and international markets. Yet, due to decades of underutilisation, Nigeria is estimated to lose about $6 billion annually, relying heavily on imports despite having the capacity for local production. Experts maintain that with a fully developed local industry, Nigeria could inject over $10 billion into its economy, significantly cut imports, and create thousands of jobs.
Little wonder, then, that the calibre of stakeholders who converged on Imobi for the Nigeria Cotton Society’s harvest underscored the importance of the moment. In attendance were the Minister of State for Industry, Senator John Enoh; senior officials from the Bank of Industry (BoI); the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC); the National Cotton Association; Cotton Farmers Cooperative Society; cotton producers from across the country; the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN); the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB); as well as international technical partners and members of the Imobi community.
As became evident during the event, the milestone was no accident but the culmination of years of deliberate planning and sustained effort. In one of the sessions, the Vice-Chancellor of FUNAAB, Prof. Olusola Kehinde-one of the project’s key partners-emphasised the vast potential within the agricultural sector. He stressed, however, that realising such potential depends on rigorous research and continuous innovation. ‘Drawing from successful models in Brazil and Egypt, we must renew our commitment to advancing Nigeria’s agricultural sector through research, data-driven practices, and best agronomic techniques. Emphasis must be placed on science-led agriculture, structured extension services, and climate-smart farming to achieve food security and economic diversification. We therefore reaffirm our readiness to support the revitalisation of Nigeria’s cotton industry, with a focus on high-quality cotton production for textile manufacturing and export,’ he said.
Building on this commitment, Ms. Adeneye and her team, alongside technical partners from Brazil and elsewhere, organised extensive training programmes for stakeholders involved in the initiative. The sessions covered both theoretical and practical aspects of the cotton and garment value chain, exposing participants to modern planting techniques and advanced equipment. These interventions ultimately yielded a bountiful harvest, drawing a wide array of stakeholders eager to witness what is increasingly being described as a quiet revolution in the industry.
Speaking at the event, an elated Senator Enoh reiterated his call for collective action, urging all stakeholders to harness the full potential of the cotton and garment value chain as a pathway to national prosperity. Said he: ‘As part of the ongoing implementation of the National Cotton, Textile and Garment Industrial Transformation Plan (NCTG-ITP), I led a field visit to the HDI demonstration cotton farm in Imobi, Ogun State. The visit enabled direct engagement with farmers, technical partners, and Phase 1 pilot stakeholders, while also providing on-site insight into improved cotton cultivars and irrigation systems designed to support year-round production.
‘We were joined by key institutions, including the Bank of Industry, the Bank of Agriculture (BOA), the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), as well as representatives of textile associations. The HDI demonstration farm serves as a practical pilot for Nigeria’s cotton revival, focused on validating production systems capable of reliably supplying raw materials to the textile industry. Two distinct approaches are evident: best-practice cultivation aimed at optimising yield and fibre quality, and stress-tested plots designed to build resilience under real field conditions.
‘A major highlight for me is HDI’s strong community engagement model. The farm functions not just as a production hub, but as a training and knowledge-transfer platform, equipping local farmers through hands-on support, extension services, and technical collaboration. We remain committed to working with all stakeholders to unlock sustainable growth, improve livelihoods, and reposition Nigeria’s cotton, textile and garment industry for long-term competitiveness.
His position was reinforced by Prof. Nnanyelugo Martin Ike-Muonso of the RMRDC, who noted that the council’s presence at the event underscored its commitment to promoting the effective utilisation of local raw materials as a catalyst for industrial development. According to him, strengthening the linkage between research outputs and industrial application remains critical to unlocking the full potential of Nigeria’s agricultural value chains.
In her remarks, Ms. Adeneye emphasised that the conversation around the Cotton, Textile and Garment (CTG) sector has moved beyond policy formulation to practical execution. She stressed that the success of the entire value chain hinges fundamentally on getting cotton production right-both in quality and quantity. ‘Industrialisation begins with raw materials. If we do not get cotton production right, the entire value chain cannot function optimally. We must begin to see the CTG value chain differently. Cotton production, ginneries, textile manufacturing, and garment production should operate as distinct industries, yet remain tightly interconnected. That is how sustainable industrial ecosystems are built,’ she said.
She further explained that the HDI initiative is deliberately structured to go beyond primary production, integrating multiple layers required for long-term sustainability. ‘At HDI, we are not just growing cotton; we are building a system. This includes farmer training, extension service development, research collaboration, digitalisation of farmer data, tracking and traceability, market linkages, as well as grading and standardisation. Without structure and systems, there can be no sustainability-and without sustainability, there can be no industry,’ she added.
Indeed, the unfolding developments suggest that the groundwork for a comprehensive transformation of Nigeria’s cotton sector is being carefully laid. This is further evidenced by the growing institutional alignment among key stakeholders. In a significant step forward, two major players in the initiative-the Bank of Industry (BoI) and the RMRDC-have formalised their collaboration through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The strategic partnership is expected to strengthen the agricultural value chain by bridging the gap between research and financing. Specifically, the agreement aims to convert research outputs into bankable projects, promote value addition, stimulate job creation, and enhance wealth retention within the domestic economy. By aligning innovation with accessible financing, the partnership is positioned to address one of the longstanding bottlenecks in Nigeria’s industrialisation drive. Taken together, stakeholders say these efforts signal a coordinated push to revive the cotton, textile and garment sector-not just as agriculture, but as a pillar of Nigeria’s broader economic diversification and industrial growth.