The Manager and Specialist for Food and Agriculture ActionAid, Nigeria, Azubuike Nwokoye has expressed concern over the significant reduction in the country’s proposed agricultural budget, saying that the sector is being regarded as an expenditure rather than an investment.
He said this while discussing with ARISE NEWS on Tuesday.
“For the 2026 proposed budget, it dropped from 4.62% in 2025 to 2.59% in 2026, meaning that it is further dropping. And also, I think politicians and policymakers need to actually reflect. We are treating, as a country, the agriculture sector as an expenditure item instead of an investment item”, he lamented.
Adding, he said: “Towards the end of last year, the UN WFP—World Food Programme—warned that about 35 million Nigerians will face severe hunger in 2026. The National Assembly quickly talked about it in a session as if they were going to do something, but nothing was done”, he said.
Nwokoye also noted that if adequate funding is not provided for the agricultural sector, growth cannot be achieved.
“Even if we have different good projections in our separate policy—whether it’s the National Agricultural Technology and Innovation Policy or the National Agri-food System Investment Plan—those projections and analysis that were done in terms of how we’ll have growth through the agriculture sector cannot be achieved if the capital component is not released”, he said.
He further noted that without adequate investment and expansion in the agriculture sector, achieving growth and improving productivity this year will be particularly challenging.
“It’s going to be challenging. You know, in terms of business, your business grows as you invest and expand. So, we did not invest and expand our agriculture sector last year.”
Nwokoye stressed that the agriculture sector’s growth in Nigeria is hindered because budgeted funds weren’t released, key institutions remain underfunded, and most 2026 allocations focus narrowly on fertilizer.
“So, when we talk about the agri-food system, we talk about those institutions. And what happens is that if one is not supported well, it affects the performance of others.
“Let’s look away from even insecurity. Even where the areas are secured, farmers did not receive support. If capital releases were not done last year, then it’s a big challenge because even the ones that were supposed to go to the farmers never got to them.
“Last year, the President committed 1.5 trillion Naira to the recapitalization of the Bank of Agriculture. That recapitalization hasn’t happened because there were no releases, except maybe newly the Bank of Agriculture can now tell us that maybe those monies were finally released.
“The National Agricultural Development Fund, which is a fund that was supposed to bridge the gap in terms of funding to the sector, is not on the first-line charge. Meaning that it is still faced with the same challenge of the budget process and the non-releases and so on.
“And moreover, in their 2026 proposed budget. 89-point-something billion out of 90 -point-something billion is named ‘Renewed Hope Fertilizer Initiative.’ Meaning that about 94% of the allocation will go to fertilizer, which is not only what we need. It means that even the institution that is set up to be a bridge is already having those problems and political interference.
“Our food import bill as at last year, towards November/December, headed to over $10 billion annually. Meaning that we are not doing the right things in the sector and we have a lot of opportunities”, he explained.
Acknowledging that about 2,000 tractors were provided by the federal government, Nwokoye said that agriculture needs smaller equipment, proper investment, youth engagement, and funding for programs like school feeding.
“About 2,000 tractors and other equipment. Distribution was done recently, so it is for us to monitor. But the thing is this: when you talk about tractors, in agriculture, it’s not only tractors that are needed. If you see our analysis, we are talking about appropriate labor-saving technologies. At times, the tractors are too expensive to maintain. So, if it breaks down, nobody can fix it easily. So, we have to invest in smaller equipment, hand-held equipment and so on.
“The Nigerian Mechanization Agency (NCAM) is there to be supported to be able to do all this. It’s a matter of investment at the right time. Agriculture should be treated as a return on investment. School feeding is something else within the agriculture sector that is also supposed to be stimulating the economy and building human capital, which a pause has been put on. This government has committed to restarting it, but nothing is happening. No money was released for school feeding last year”, he revealed.
The ActionAid Manager and Specialist further stated that the National Agricultural Insurance Corporation must be functional and accessible, and investments should support the entire agricultural value chain, not just fertilizer.
“The first thing is to de-risk the sector. We cannot ask 40 million youth to go into a sector where they might lose everything to insecurity or lack of insurance. The National Agricultural Insurance Corporation (NAIC) needs to be functional and accessible to the smallholder. Secondly, we must move away from the ‘Fertilizer-Only’ approach. If you look at the 2026 proposal, almost the entire budget for the Development Fund is tied to fertilizer. Fertilizer is useless if you don’t have the labor-saving technology to plant or the extension services to teach the youth how to use it. We need a balanced investment across the value chain from mechanization to storage”, he said.
Speaking on the school feeding programme, Nwokoye said its pause deprives smallholder farmers of a guaranteed market, harming both the rural economy and children.
“This is a tragedy for the local economy. The school feeding program is not just about feeding children; it is a guaranteed market for local farmers. When you stop the program, you take away the livelihood of thousands of smallholder farmers who were the primary suppliers. If the 2026 budget doesn’t provide the actual cash releases for this, we are failing both the children and the rural economy.”
Addressing the National Assembly, Azubike Nwokoye urged transparency on the Fertilizer Initiative, and prioritising the Agricultural Development Fund to prevent recurring failures.
“They must move beyond the rhetoric. They should ask for a breakdown of the ‘Renewed Hope Fertilizer Initiative’, and ensure that the National Agricultural Development Fund is placed on the first-line charge. Without that, we will be back here in 2027 talking about the same failures”, he noted.
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