The Federal Government will provide up to N2 billion in financing to each of 40 tertiary institutions to establish commercial farms under its Renewed Hope Tertiary Agricultural and Entrepreneurship Programme.
The Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, announced this at a meeting with heads of the institutions and the management of the Bank of Agriculture yesterday in Abuja.
In a statement by the Special Adviser to the Minister on Media and Communications, Attah Ikharo, the minister said the programme would harness more than 500,000 hectares of underutilised land in tertiary institutions for commercial farming, research and enterprise development.
Participating universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education are expected to provide about 1,000 hectares each, although institutions with smaller landholdings may qualify based on the viability of their proposals.
Alausa said each institution would establish a limited liability company to partner with the Bank of Agriculture, which would provide between N1bn and N2 billion for farm production and related inputs.
The minister explained that the initiative was being built on the previous Federal Government’s interventions through the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), which approved N1 billion for some institutions and N2 billion for others.
The Federal Ministry of Education had also earmarked N20 billion in its capital budget to support 20 institutions under the programme.
Throwing more light on mechanisation of the proposed agricultural programme, the minister said each participating institution would have access to 10 tractors at reduced costs, as well as seedlings, farm implements, irrigation equipment, water pumps, fertilisers and technical support.
He added that arrangements would be made with produce aggregators to buy harvested crops and minimise post-harvest losses.
Alausa said the programme would also promote processing and other agro-allied activities, creating an agricultural value chain within participating institutions.
The minister said students, unemployed graduates, alumni, staff and members of host communities would be encouraged to participate in commercial farming under the supervision of lecturers and agricultural experts.
According to him, the initiative will provide practical experience, promote entrepreneurship and enable participants to benefit from revenue generated by 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 and commercial production.
Alausa assured the tertiary institutions that the ministry would work with the bank, relevant government agencies and the institutions to ensure effective implementation.
The Vice-Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Prof. Adamu Ahmed, said the initiative would help the institution to translate its agricultural research into commercial production.
He cited the university’s Institute of Agricultural Research, the National Agricultural Extension and Research Liaison Services, and the Faculty of Agriculture as existing structures that could support the programme.
Also, the Rector of Federal Polytechnic Oko, Anambra State, Dr. Chioma Irene Awuzie, said the initiative would enable the institution to maximise its available land through mechanised farming.
The Managing Director of the Bank of Agriculture, Ayo Sotinrin, said the bank would provide financing and market linkages to commercialise agricultural research, improve productivity and create opportunities for students and unemployed graduates.
He added that participating institutions could contribute to food supply beyond their immediate communities while generating revenue from their farms.