Nigerian farmers are concerned that the 2,000 tractors other mechanization tools that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu inaugurated in June are still sitting in storage, unused, as the wet season comes to an end.
Launched with the goal of producing two million metric tons of food and cultivating more than 550,000 hectares, the program was hailed as the biggest mechanization drive in Nigerian history. However, the equipment that was purchased in collaboration with Belarus and intended to lessen the workload for smallholder farmers has not yet been put into use.
Farmers’ organizations caution that the postponement may jeopardize efforts to ensure food security. The All Farmers Progressive Association’s president, Dr. Ogbo Douglas, bemoaned that “the same government that declared a state of emergency on food security has left farmers stranded two months after the tractors were launched.”
The Community Allied Farmers Association’s leader, Austin Maduka, called the situation “disappointing and dangerous,” emphasizing that the delay had cost farmers important time during this year’s planting cycle.
Farmers from Kano and Kaduna had similar worries: the tractors gave them optimism, but as the season draws to a close, expectations run the risk of becoming frustrated. Abdulrashid Na’ibi, a farmer from Kano, said, “We were thrilled to watch the launch on TV, but the tractors never reached us.”
Although distribution modalities are complete, Ministry of Agriculture officials stated that the ministry is currently awaiting presidential permission.
Senator Abubakar Kyari, the Agriculture Minister, promised that the tractors will be introduced under close supervision after approval in order to guard against abuse.
North-East governors, meanwhile, have issued new warnings about the threat of food shortages and the escalating cost of inputs, demanding immediate subsidies and effective dry-season measures.