The African Development Bank Group has approved a $200 million loan to scale up climate-smart and technology-driven farming in Nigeria.
The financing, disclosed in a statement by the Bank, will support the second phase of the Federal Government’s National Agricultural Growth Scheme–Agro-Pocket (NAGS-AP), aimed at strengthening food security, raising productivity, and improving agricultural value chains.
Structured as sector budget support, the loan will expand farmers’ access to quality inputs, modern technologies, and data-driven agricultural practices nationwide. It builds on earlier interventions under the African Emergency Food Production Facility and is expected to run for four years beginning March 2026.
According to the Bank, the programme will scale priority investments designed to accelerate climate-resilient farming systems and deepen value addition across key crops. It will also reinforce five programmes under Nigeria’s agricultural technology and innovation policy framework, including improved input distribution, stronger value chains, revitalised extension services, digital agriculture, and enhanced data systems.
Abdul Kamara, Director-General for Nigeria at the Bank, said the second phase draws on lessons from earlier interventions to widen impact. He noted that expanded access to inputs, digital tools, and climate-smart technologies would help farmers improve productivity and resilience, reduce food imports, and support inclusive growth.
Phase I of NAGS-AP recorded measurable gains through an ICT-based input distribution system involving more than 600 agro-dealers supplying certified seeds, fertilisers, and crop protection products. About 118,000 hectares of wheat were cultivated during the 2023/2024 dry season, with national wheat output rising to roughly 500,000 metric tonnes in 2024. Some 650,000 smallholder farmers producing wheat, rice, cassava, maize, sorghum, and millet benefited from the scheme.
Agriculture remains central to the Nigerian economy, employing about 38 per cent of the workforce and contributing roughly a quarter of GDP. However, productivity continues to be constrained by limited access to improved inputs, weak land tenure systems, low irrigation coverage, and climate-related stress.
The new phase targets a fivefold increase in wheat output and a 20 per cent rise in rice production, building on earlier progress while emphasising climate resilience and technology adoption.
Separately, the Bank approved a $500 million loan in November 2025 to support the government’s Economic Governance and Energy Transition Support Programme.
