President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has given the green light for the establishment of a ₦50-billion Presidential Catalytic Seed Fund, an intervention aimed at revitalising Nigeria’s seed industry, improving food security, and driving private-sector-led growth across the seed value chain.
Vice President Kashim Shettima announced the approval yesterday in Abuja at the opening of the eighth SeedConnect Africa Conference and Exhibition, which also coincided with the 50th anniversary celebration of the National Agricultural Seeds Council (NASC).
The Vice President also unveiled the Seeds for Renewed Hope Programme (S-RHP), which will serve as the engine room for the country’s new seed transformation agenda.
Shettima, who was represented by his Senior Special Adviser on Food Security, Dr. Kingsley Uzoma, said the fund would deliver significant socio-economic and environmental benefits while addressing long-standing structural challenges within the seed subsector.
The Vice President described seed as the first technology, the original data packet that determines the success or failure of the agricultural value chain.
As part of the programme’s rollout, government and private sector partners distributed improved varieties of rice, maize, and vegetable seeds to farmers.
The Nation learnt that the Federal Government aims to boost annual seed availability for key crops by 10 per cent from 2025 to 2027, in a bid to close the existing gap between seed demand and supply.
The ₦50 billion fund, which activates Section 45 of the NASC Act 2019, will support private-sector-led seed production, expand farmers’ access to certified seeds, and remove barriers slowing down the development of the seed industry.
Shettima also announced government’s plans to upgrade seed testing laboratories, intensify the crackdown on adulterated seeds, and increase youth and women participation in seed entrepreneurship.
The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, described the seed sector’s 50-year history as a testament to Nigeria’s resilience and commitment to strengthening its agricultural foundation.
Reaffirming that quality seeds remain central to President Tinubu’s food security priorities, the minister said agriculture is the measure of Nigeria’s national resilience and a pillar of stability.
Kyari highlighted key achievements in the sector, including the expansion of the National Agricultural Growth Scheme–Agro-Pocket (NAGS-AP), increased wheat production across several states, the successful introduction of rain-fed wheat in Plateau State, the recapitalisation of the Bank of Agriculture (BoA) with N1.5 trillion, an additional N250 billion funding window, and the full activation of the National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF).
The minister noted that food prices have begun to ease in several commodity markets.
“While we are not yet where we want to be, this positive trend confirms that we are moving in the right direction,” he said
NASC’s Director-General, Fatuhu Muhammed, highlighted the agency’s transformation into a regional leader in seed regulation and digital seed traceability.
He cited major milestones, including the release of over 60 improved, climate-resilient seed varieties, the implementation of the Digital Seed Certification System, new guidelines on crop variety registration and third-party certification, and Nigeria’s expanding footprint in global seed bodies such as ISTA, UPOV, OECD schemes, and ECOWAS COASEM.
Muhammed announced that Nigeria exported more than 4,000 MT of certified seeds in 2023, earning over $8 million.
To celebrate NASC’s Golden Jubilee, the Council unveiled the Nigeria Seed Industry Book, the Seeds for Renewed Hope Programme, the Nigeria Seed System Strategy Document (supported by AGRA), and the official NASC 50th anniversary logo.
He added that the newly approved ₦50 billion fund, housed in the Bank of Industry with a 6% concessional interest rate, would significantly enhance breeding, early-generation seed supply, quality assurance, and commercial seed production over the next four years.
Credit: thenationonlineng.net
