FG mulls agribusiness investment fund with private sector to reduce £3bn food imports

The Federal Government has reaffirmed its commitment to partnering with the private sector on an Agribusiness Financing Programme aimed at enhancing the nation’s food security.

During a high-level meeting with the Honourable Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, and the CEO of the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI), Dr Armstrong Takang, private sector stakeholders, alongside KPMG, presented an investment fund model designed to attract large-scale financing for the cultivation and processing of essential crops such as oil palm, rice, maize, cassava, sugar, and soybean.

This proposal aligns with the administration’s objective to curtail Nigeria’s £3 billion annual food import bill by expanding mechanised agriculture, boosting local refining capacity, and fortifying food security. It underscores private sector involvement, accountability, and scalability as key drivers of success.

The initiative is structured as a private sector-led Large-Scale Agribusiness Financing Programme, introduced to the Federal Government as a collaborative strategy to foster food sovereignty through substantial investment in industrial agriculture.

In their separate remarks, the Minister and Dr Takang welcomed the initiative, reaffirming the government’s dedication to working alongside the private sector to unlock investments and propel a sustainable transformation in agriculture.

“As Nigeria makes significant progress towards food sovereignty, this groundbreaking partnership between the private sector and the government marks a pivotal step in the country’s quest for a more resilient, self-sufficient, and prosperous future,” they stated.