Federal Government, World Bank and IFAD Target Millions of Beneficiaries and New Jobs Through Value-Chain Development.
Enugu Media Village (EMV), the Most Updated Online News Platform | September 28, 2026.
The Federal Government of Nigeria, the World Bank Group and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) have launched the Nigeria AgriConnect Compact, a national framework designed to accelerate agricultural transformation, strengthen food and nutrition security, create jobs and expand opportunities across priority agricultural value chains.
The Compact was launched in Ibadan, Oyo State, as part of efforts to bring government, development partners, financial institutions, research organisations and private-sector actors around a coordinated agenda for transforming Nigeria’s food and agriculture sector.
AgriConnect is a World Bank Group initiative designed to help smallholder farmers move from subsistence production towards commercially oriented agriculture. Its approach focuses on strengthening farmer organisations, improving market connections, expanding access to finance and digital agricultural solutions, and increasing private-sector participation in food systems.
For Nigeria, the Compact is aligned with the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda and the National Agricultural Technology and Innovation Policy (NATIP). It will concentrate on selected crop and livestock value chains with significant potential for increased productivity, investment and employment.
Over the next five years, the initiative aims to improve food and nutrition security for nearly three million people and support the creation of more than 2.5 million jobs through value-chain development and stronger market integration.
The programme is also expected to mobilise an estimated US$5 billion over five years from government, development partners and the private sector. The financing is intended to support agricultural productivity, policy reforms and improved access to credit, insurance and blended finance for farmers and agribusinesses.
The initiative comes against the backdrop of persistent challenges facing Nigeria’s agricultural sector, including low productivity, limited access to finance, inadequate market integration, post-harvest losses and the effects of insecurity and climate-related shocks.
According to World Bank project documentation, agriculture contributes about 26 per cent of Nigeria’s GDP, while the sector remains dominated by smallholder farmers operating on relatively small holdings and with limited integration into structured commercial value chains.
The AgriConnect framework therefore seeks to connect production more effectively with infrastructure, research, finance, processing, logistics and markets, creating a more integrated agricultural ecosystem rather than treating individual agricultural interventions in isolation.
The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, said the challenge was not necessarily a lack of agricultural programmes or investments, but ensuring that existing interventions complement one another and produce stronger results through coordination.
IFAD is expected to contribute its experience in working directly with smallholder farmers, strengthening farmer organisations, improving post-harvest management and developing commercial links between producers and reliable markets.
The organisation said its involvement would build on its existing agricultural and rural-development programmes in Nigeria, including the Value Chain Development Programme (VCDP) and the Livelihood Improvement Family Enterprises Project in the Niger Delta (LIFE-ND).
Digital technology is also expected to play an important role in the implementation of AgriConnect. World Bank project documents identify digital agricultural services, extension advice, weather information, market information and satellite-based technologies among the areas that can help improve access to information and services for farmers.
Beyond food production, the initiative is expected to strengthen Nigeria’s agricultural value chains by supporting processing, logistics, financing and market access. This could provide opportunities for farmers, young people, agribusinesses, financial institutions and other private-sector participants across the agricultural economy.
The launch represents another major step in the Federal Government’s efforts to position agriculture as a key driver of economic diversification, food security, employment and rural development.
With implementation expected to involve multiple levels of government and development partners, the success of the Compact will depend on effective coordination, sustained financing and the ability to translate its targets into measurable improvements for farmers and consumers.
As Nigeria seeks to strengthen domestic food production and reduce vulnerabilities in its food system, the AgriConnect Compact is expected to provide a coordinated framework for connecting farmers and agribusinesses to the resources, technology, finance and markets required to expand agricultural production.
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