Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has launched a farmers’ support programme that will provide improved agricultural inputs to 18,634 verified farmers, as part of efforts to boost commercial farming, strengthen food security and drive economic growth.
The programme, flagged off at the Umuahia Township Stadium, follows a statewide registration and verification exercise aimed at ensuring that government support reaches genuine farmers.
Speaking at the launch, Otti said accurate data is central to the success of the state’s agricultural interventions.
“We started with data gathering because we wanted to map every farmer to a farm. We now have a comprehensive database of our farmers. If we cannot identify you, we won’t be able to support you,” he said.
The governor urged farmers who have yet to register to take advantage of the ongoing registration exercise to benefit from future interventions.
Otti said his administration is repositioning agriculture from subsistence farming to commercial production, describing agriculture as a viable business capable of creating jobs, improving food security and stimulating economic growth.
“While we will continue to support smallholder farmers, our focus is on promoting commercial agriculture because it is a veritable business,” he said.
To ease logistics for beneficiaries, the governor announced that the state government would transport the farm inputs directly to farmers at no additional cost.
He also disclosed that Abia’s improved investment climate has attracted significant interest from investors, including a multinational palm oil company that has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the state to invest up to $200 million in the agricultural sector.
According to Otti, the investment is expected to create jobs, reduce poverty and strengthen the state’s position as a major agricultural hub.
Cliff Agbaeze, Commissioner for Agriculture, said beneficiaries would receive improved varieties of cassava, rice, maize, plantain, sweet potato, pepper and tomato, as well as organic fertilisers.
He said 3,312 farmers would receive their inputs during the flag-off, while the remaining 15,322 beneficiaries would be served through distribution centres across the state’s 17 local government areas.
Agbaeze explained that only farmers captured in the state’s database and verified as genuine farmers with evidence of farmland qualified for the programme.
He added that the government had fully paid for all the inputs and would also cover transportation costs.
Prof. Chiedozie Egesi, Executive Director of the National Root Crops Research Institute (NRCRI), described the programme as evidence that agriculture has regained prominence in Abia’s development agenda.
He praised Otti’s leadership and commended the administration for establishing a comprehensive farmers’ database, describing it as a critical step towards effective agricultural planning.
Egesi also pledged the institute’s support in improving agricultural productivity across the state.
Similarly, Prof. Ursula Ngozi Akanwa, Vice-Chancellor of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, said the initiative would improve farmers’ productivity, enhance livelihoods and contribute to sustainable agricultural growth.
She urged beneficiaries to make effective use of the inputs, noting that agriculture remains Nigeria’s most reliable pathway to food security, poverty reduction and economic development.
The launch attracted senior government officials, agricultural experts and other stakeholders, underscoring the state’s renewed commitment to building a modern, data-driven agricultural sector.
