The Federal Government has unveiled the National Agricultural Mechanisation Policy and National Agricultural Mechanisation Investment Strategy as part of efforts to transform Nigeria’s agricultural sector, reduce food vulnerability and strengthen national food sovereignty.
The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, disclosed this on Wednesday at the High-Level National Policy Dialogue on Agricultural Mechanisation in partnership with TracTrac Mechanisation Services Limited, held in Abuja.
The dialogue, themed ‘Anchoring National Food Sovereignty through Sustainable Agricultural Mechanisation Policy, Innovation and Strategic Investment,’ brought together government officials, farmers’ organisations, financial institutions, development partners, private-sector operators, researchers and agricultural professionals.
Kyari said the new policy was designed to move Nigeria beyond fragmented government interventions and create a sustainable mechanisation ecosystem driven by investment, technology, skills and private-sector participation.
He stressed that agricultural mechanisation should not be limited to tractor ownership, noting that modern mechanisation covers the entire agricultural value chain, including land preparation, planting, irrigation, harvesting, processing, storage, transportation and logistics.
According to him, the government’s objective is to develop a ‘Mechanization-as-a-Service’ economy that would make machinery and related services available to farmers when and where they are needed at commercially viable costs.
The minister said the Federal Government, under the Renewed Hope National Agricultural Mechanisation Programme (RH-NAMP), had commenced the procurement and deployment of 2,000 tractors and more than 9,000 assorted implements and spare parts.
Kyari also announced plans under the investment strategy to establish a mega tractor assembly plant with an annual production capacity of between 2,000 and 4,000 tractors.
Speaking on behalf of the private sector, the Chief Executive Officer of TracTrac Mechanisation Services Limited, Mr Godson Ohuruogu, said the ratification of the policy represented a major step towards making agricultural mechanisation accessible to smallholder farmers.
Ohuruogu said TracTrac had reached more than 500,000 farmers, catalysed over N2 billion in investments, trained more than 6,000 young people, women and persons with disabilities, and created more than 3,000 jobs through its initiatives.
He said the company had also established 567 youth- and women-led cooperatives and deployed tractors and labour-saving equipment to emerging mechanisation service providers.
Ohuruogu stressed that the success of the new policy should ultimately be measured by its impact on farmers, particularly whether they could access mechanisation services on time and at affordable prices.
He said financing, inclusion and technology would be critical to ensuring that the policy translated from a national document into practical services at the grassroots.
The TracTrac CEO urged stakeholders to maintain focus on farmers, women and young Nigerians who would operate, own and expand the emerging mechanisation ecosystem.
The dialogue is expected to culminate in the ratification of the National Agricultural Mechanisation Policy and the inauguration of its implementation committee, setting the stage for coordinated implementation of Nigeria’s mechanisation agenda.
The Federal Government said the broader objective is to move Nigeria from agricultural potential to greater productivity and competitiveness while strengthening domestic food production and reducing dependence on food imports.
The event brought together stakeholders across the country, including the governor of Borno and the deputy governor of Katsina among top government officials.
The launch was followed by the inauguration of an implementation task force, describing the development as the beginning of implementation rather than the conclusion of discussions.