Agriculture
Dangote: Tackling Nigeria’s Fertiliser Conundrum

Angela Okisor takes a look at the efforts of Dangote Group in addressing Nigeria’s fertilizer deficit, especially with the construction of the Dangote Fertiliser Plant located at the Lekki Free Trade Zone, Lagos, believed not just to be Africa’s largest but an ultimate game-changer.
The issue of fertiliser has been a knotty matter for farmers in Nigeria over the years.
Very often, it is either in short supply or just too expensive and well beyond reach.The supply of the commodity, so cardinal to bountiful farming output, has, over the years, defied all logics, with the activities of middlemen, who hoard the product, and lack of adequate local production capacity, combining to compound the woes of farmers across the country.
Eager to address the lingering problem, the Federal Government initiated policies to drive the agricultural and agro-allied sector as a component of its economic growth agenda.
In 2016, President Muhammadu Buhari introduced a fertiliser initiative which saw a surge in the number of local manufacturers of fertiliser.Prior to that year, there were very few functional fertiliser plants.
The number has increased to over 70, most of which are owned by private sector operators.One of such local fertiliser plants, the Dangote Fertiliser Plant located at the Lekki Free Trade Zone, Lagos, was inaugurated by President Buhari on March 22.
Believed to be Africa’s largest granulated Urea fertiliser plant, it was built at a cost of 2.5 billion dollars and occupies 500 hectares of land. It has the capacity to produce three million metric tonnes of urea fertiliser per annum.
Analysts believe that this quantity will meet almost half of the country’s total fertiliser need, estimated at seven million metric tonnes per annum.
With the coming on stream of the Dangote Fertiliser plant, it is expected that the product will be available in large quantity as at when due.
It is also expected that Dangote Fertiliser will make Nigeria and Africa self-sufficient in food production and a net exporter of food to the world.
Dr Joe Dada, Chairman of Livestock Feeds plc, believes that Dangote Fertiliser will bring massive foreign exchange to the country and also create employment.“For me, it is another crude oil to Nigeria because Nigeria will soon be an exporter of the product.
“Recently, Nigeria signed the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement, so this is a major platform for us to cover the whole African region.“I see massive foreign exchange inflow as a result of the Dangote investment,” he said.
Mrs Omolara Oguntuyi, Zonal Director, South-West, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, has a similar view.
“The plant will bring succour to the nation, especially with fertiliser standing as a big hurdle on the nation’s path to food sufficiency.
“Over the years, the Dangote group has always penetrated the rural areas to ensure the end-users got its products; we do not expect the fertiliser to be different.”
While inaugurating the plant, Buhari had said that the 2.5 billion dollar plant would boost Nigeria’s foreign exchange earnings and accelerate economic growth.“This fertiliser plant is expected to enhance our administration’s drive towards achieving self-sufficiency in food production in the country.
“I commend the Dangote Industries Ltd. for their business initiative in establishing this plant.“It will reduce our dependence on importation of fertiliser, create jobs, increase the inflow of foreign exchange and accelerate economic growth.”
According to him, the establishment of the plant demonstrates the commitment of Dangote Industries Ltd. to the socio-economic development of the country and the well-being of Nigerians.
The president expressed optimism that the investment in the plant would replicate the group’s earlier experience in the cement sector where it had become a leading name in Nigeria and across the African continent.
Mr Gideon Negedu, Executive Secretary, Fertiliser Producers and Suppliers Association of Nigeria (FEPSAN), is optimistic that more investments will still come into the fertiliser industry.
According to him, the good policy of the federal government is responsible for the recent surge in the number of fertiliser manufacturing plants in the country.
He said the fertiliser plants would meet the requirements of farmers across the country.“One challenge with fertiliser is that the requirement of southern Nigeria is totally different from Northern Nigeria as the Northern soil is not as fertile as the southern soil, which has a higher level of nutrients.
“Now, Nigeria has a local industry that blends fertiliser to the specific needs of farmers.“So, all farmers need to do is to visit any local blender around notifying them that a soil test has been done and then the blender provides the farmer with appropriate and even customised fertiliser,” he said.
On complaints over the high price of fertiliser, he said the price of the commodity had increased globally, which affected fertiliser importation and purchase price.
A bag of fertiliser is said to cost between N20,000 and N23,000, depending on the company, quality of fertiliser and size. But operators have attributed the 30 per cent of the cost to logistics, as the commodity is transported mainly by road.
For Dr. Akin Olonihuwa, ex-provost of the College of Agriculture, Kabba, Kwara State, farmers need more support and assistance for their production activities.He said that support was needed, for instance, in land preparation in some parts of the country, for rice and other food crops.
To John Olateru, chairman, Commodities Association of Nigeria, what remains crucial is the expansion of the federal government’s Anchor Borrowers Programme to the South, arguing that it had remained lop-sided mainly in favour of the North.
He claimed that since the inception of the programme handled by the Central Bank of Nigeria, the beneficiaries had been mainly from the North.
But to ensure availability of fertiliser to farmers with the coming of Dangote Fertiliser, stakeholders have called for the overhaul of the entire distribution system of the products.
Mr Lanre Oguntoye of the National Association of Chambers of Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), particularly cautions against allowing middleman to neutralise the gains expected from the new plant.
He recalled that during the inauguration of the Dangote Fertiliser, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Chairman, Dangote Group, promised availability of the products, saying that the days of scarcity of the product were over.
Mr Basil Okafor, a local farmer in Delta, believes that agriculture can be the main stay of the nation’s economy if given the necessary priority. He said the country had vast arable land in all the six geo-political zones to support the nation’s food security agenda.
Chief Joseph Olanrewaju of the Organised Private Sector Exporters Association, believes that support of non-oil exporters by the federal government would help in attracting the much needed foreign earnings, thereby creating millions of jobs across the country.
He said that friendly and conducive policies would not only boost investors’ confidence like the case of fetiliser sector, but also attract the much needed Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) to the country.
But while analysts await the impact of the Dangote fertiliser plant, Mr Oboh Abumeri, a cassava grower in Edo, believes that food shortages will be tackled if fertiliser is made available to genuine farmers.
“The coming on stream of the plant will put more food on the tables of common Nigerians, create jobs, wealth as well as help the country attain the much talked-about food security.“There are regrettable challenges of insecurity in the land which may distract farmers and frustrate effective supply across the country, but I am confident that such hurdles will be effectively tackled so that the nation will fully enjoy the full impact of the Dangote Fertiliser plant,” he said.
Like Abumeri, many analysts believe that gains from the Dangote Fertiliser Plant are massive and urge stakeholders to support the group so as to effectively tackle the fertiliser conundrum that had stood on the path to Nigeria’s effective economic revival. (NANFeatures)
Agriculture
Food Security: Kogi Earmarks 30,000 Hectares Land For Farming

From Joseph Amedu, Lokoja
The Kogi government said it has set aside 30,000 hectares of land for farming activities in the state to boost food production.
Commissioner for Agriculture, Timothy Ojomah disclosed this in a chat with DAILY ASSET in Lokoja.
Ojomah said that the hectares of land would be allocated to farmers to ensure all year-round farming activities in the state.
He said the government had allocated 8,000 hectares in 2024, and decided to increase the size to 30,000 hectares to ensure massive food production and food security in the state.
The commissioner said: “the result of last year is obvious, given the records from the Bureau of Statistics.
“The prices of food items have reduced drastically in the state compared to what we experienced in 2024.
“Kogi stands at the bottom now in the ranking of states with high cost of food items.
“We used to be at the top in the ranking, however, the massive increase in food production is already changing the narrative.
“We are scaling up what we did last year and the farmers are already motivated by the intervention from government.
“We have already received more than 60,000 requests for the 30,000 hectares earmarked, which speaks about the enthusiasm and motivation of the farmers.
“More people are embracing farming in the state and looking forward to how the government can help them to improve food production.”
Ojomah also disclosed that the state government had birthed a special concept of Free Trade Zones and signed agreement with some group of Chinese companies and the World Bank to set up industries that could process its farm produce.
He also said that Gov. Ahmed Ododo recently approved a three months smart agriculture training for 50 youths from the state.
“When they return, they will equally train others to ensure that the state derived the desired benefits of the value chain in agriculture – processing, packaging, and exporting of our products.
“As we speak, arrangements are being concluded to expand the Omi Dam for production of 4,000 hectares of rice that can feed our rice mill (Alape Rice Mill), ” he said.
Ojomah, said the Gov. Ododo led government was partnering with Silvex International to set up a very large rice farm in the area.
“Silvex International is an experienced company in rice production, processing, and export.
“With the dam in the area, we are going to have full mechanised farming and all year-round rice farming,”he said.
The commissioner appreciated the governor’s foresight in developing the agricultural sector to enhance food production in the state.
“The governor has pledged that Kogi state will be vast in food production, ” he said
Agriculture
Experts urge Media to Present Information on Genetically Modified Foods Objectively

The National Biotechnology Research and Development Agency (NBRDA) has urged the media to stand in the communication gap in favour of biotechnology development n Nigeria, re-affirming the safety in the consumption of genetically modified foods.
Prof. Abdullahi Mustapha, Director General/Chief Executive Officer of the agency, affirmed this during a one-day media field trip to NBRDA FARMS on Monday in Abuja.
The trip was organised by Open Forum On Agricultural Biotechnology (OFAB), an initiative of the African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF).
“Today, you shall be visiting our TELA Maize farms. This provides an exciting opportunity to see for yourselves what we have been doing here and equally gather your findings on what you have seen today and then take back the message to the people to quell some of the miscommunications about Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) crops.
“TELA Maize hybrid varieties were developed to address some of the pressing challenges facing our farmers, including pests and diseases that can significantly reduce crop yields,” he said.
According to him, the production of the TELA MAIZE hybrid was done through the combined efforts of scientists at the Institute for Agricultural Research (IAR), Zaria in collaboration with stakeholders in key institutions such as NBRDA, NBMA, NASC, and the AATF Research Team.
“We are here to showcase our demonstration farms of genetically modified versions of commonly consumed crops developed by our scientists that have enjoyed rave reviews from the global world of science and the agricultural sector.
“These experts have worked tirelessly to ensure that this crop is not only high-yielding but also safe for human consumption,” he added.
He noted that the National Biosafety Management Agency (NBMA) has been instrumental in ensuring the safety and efficacy of TELA Maize which is believed to have the potential to transform the agricultural landscape in Nigeria and beyond.
Dr Jean Baptiste, the Regional Representative of the African Agricultural Technology Foundation, said that GMOs were aimed at leveraging the potential of biotechnology to develop a system that will help farmers.
He said Tella maize is a variety, developed using biotechnology methods to control insects.
“It also checks the resistance to drought and controls army worms, and stem borers in maize.
“At the end of the day, the benefits are enormous because it helps farmers increase yield and to be able to meet food security issues.
Dr. Francis Nwankwo, a TELA MAIZE developer from the African Agriculture Technology Foundation (AATF) explained the processes saying Tela maize passed through a genetic transformation that happens at the DNA level .
“They are not manufactured. What happens is we identify genes that can inhibit the infestation or reduce the infestation of some lepidoptera pests that affect some crops.
“So when we identify those genes we incorporate them into the DNA of maize thereby making it the maize, plus the genes.
“That way we increase the genes and reduce the struggles that our conventional maize go through on our farms like the stem borrower and others,” he said.
In her presentation, Dr Rose Gidado, Director, Agricultural Biotechnology Department, NBRDA, explained that many countries have derived huge benefits from TELA maize citing countries such as the U.S. and Canada.
“We actually brought you here so you could see the disparities between the TELA MAIZE and the non-TELA MAIZE species, and the environment which is far different from what we see on social media.
“We have other crops like beans that have actually been through the same gene transfers and are doing perfectly well and are safe for consumption,” she said.
She, therefore, urged the media to be on the guard in view of a lot of misinformation going round on social media and take responsibility in providing related information to the public adequately and objectively. (NAN)
Agriculture
Epe LG Empowers 200 Farmers to Boost Food Production

Ms Surah Animashaun, the Chairperson, Epe Local Government, has empowered 200 farmers with cash and other agricultural inputs to boost food production in the area.
Animashaun distributed the agricultural inputs to the beneficiaries at the council secretariat in Epe on Thursday in Lagos.
She said the initiative was aimed at supporting farmers in order to boost food production in the various communities of the council.
Animashaun said the farmers who benefitted from the gesture are expected to be considerate in their price fixing after harvest to ensure the affordability of food for all Nigerians.
“With the economic situation now and the support being giving to you, farmers should be reasonable in fixing prices after harvest to ensure that ordinary Nigerians source food at a more convenient price nationwide.
“We are here to give you support for your farming activities today, we expect that you reciprocate tomorrow by selling at a more affordable price to the people tomorrow,’’ she said.
Animashaun explained that each of the benefiting farmers received N50,000 and essential grains such as maize and sorghum.
She said the council would continue to support the farmers for them to be strong in farming activities.
Animashaun also used the medium to highlight her administration’s ongoing efforts in the extension of palliatives to other sectors of the economy.
She urged the communities in the area to maintain harmony, love, hospitality, and compassion, particularly in the face of the present economic challenges.
Also speaking, Mr Sikiru Owolomoshe, the Vice Chairman of the council, urged the farmers to take advantage of the gesture to improve their activities in order to encourage others.
Mr Olayinka Kazeem, the Secretary of Epe Farmers and a beneficiary, expressed gratitude to the council chairperson and her management.
“This is the first time we are witnessing this kind of programme and it is coming at a critical period when many states are facing food shortage,’’ he said.
He assured that the beneficiaries would do their best to ensure the objective was achieved.
Mr Ahmed Surakat, the Public Relations Officer of Lagos State Fishermen Cooperative Association, and Mrs Kafilat Animashahun beneficiaries, extended their gratitude to the council chairman for her unwavering support to farmers.
Earlier, the President of the Epe Farmers Union, Mrs Aminat Shabi, lauded Animashaun for the comprehensive support to other agricultural value chain such as fish farmers and livestock producers.(NAN)