Tinubu earmarks N50bn, 2,000 tractors for 1.5m hectares in 2026 farming season

The President Bola Tinubu administration has made available N50 billion seed fund through the Bank of Industry (BoI) for this year's farming season.

The Federal government also earmarked 2,000 tractors to cultivate no less than 1.5 million hectares of land across states in the federation.

The government further disclosed that it had mobilised N250bn to support small holder farmers, in a renewed push to enhance food production, improve rural livelihoods, and drive economic growth across the country.

The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, who made the disclosure on Monday, said the initiative marked a turning point in Nigeria’s agricultural history under the leadership of Bola Tinubu.

He explained that the programme would be implemented in phases, beginning with the deployment of 600 tractors.

“Through the Renewed Hope National Agricultural Mechanisation Programme, we are deploying 2,000 heavy-capacity tractors and over 9,000 precision implements under a rigorously engineered national framework.

“This first tranche of 600 tractors marks the beginning of a phased acceleration. This will be followed by 750 tractors and 650 tractors, culminating in a nationwide force of 2,000 mechanisation assets,” he stated.

According to the minister, the response to the first phase of the programme underscored public confidence in the administration.

Kyari clarified that the tractors would not be handed out for private ownership but entrusted to Mechanisation Service Providers under a structured system.

He disclosed that the Bank of Agriculture, in collaboration with Heifer International, would deploy structured financing models to ensure sustainability and accountability.

“These tractors will not sit idle. They will work and multiply productivity. They will generate value across the agricultural value chain,” the minister said.