Lagos — Stakeholders across Nigeria’s agriculture sector have called for stronger coordination along the value chain to enhance productivity and food security, as highlighted at the BusinessDay Future of Agriculture Conference held in Lagos.
The conference, themed “From Seed to Feed: Strengthening Agricultural Inputs for Food Security,” convened policymakers, agribusiness operators, financial institutions, and development partners to address challenges in input systems, financing, and infrastructure. Participants included Lagos State Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Systems, Abisola Olusanya, representing Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu; Special Adviser on Agriculture and Food Systems, Oluwarotimi Fashola; Chief Executive Officer of Babban Gona, Kola Masha; and Group Chief Executive Officer of AFEX, Ayodeji Balogun, who delivered a keynote on improving farmers’ access to quality inputs to boost food production.
During a panel session, Kudzai Gumunyu, Divisional Head, Agribusiness and Non-Oil Export at First City Monument Bank (FCMB), emphasized the central role of financial institutions in supporting Nigeria’s largely smallholder-driven agricultural sector. “With smallholder farmers accounting for nearly 90% of Nigeria’s agricultural production, the focus must be on building inclusive financing models that address their unique realities,” he said. “This means strengthening risk mitigation frameworks through structured guarantees and partnerships that de-risk lending while ensuring farmers have access to the capital they need to grow.”
Gumunyu advocated for a structured, value-chain-led approach to improve outcomes in production, aggregation, and market access. “Sustainable agricultural growth requires coordinated value chain mobilisation, where financial institutions effectively channel funds from depositors into well-structured agricultural value chains,” he explained. “By aligning financing with production, aggregation, and market access, we can unlock productivity, improve yields, and ultimately strengthen food security outcomes.”
Discussions at the conference also focused on improving access to quality inputs, expanding infrastructure, and strengthening collaboration between public- and private-sector participants. FCMB reaffirmed its commitment to supporting agribusiness and non-oil exports through partnerships aimed at improving access to finance and building more resilient agricultural systems.
The conference underscored the need for integrated approaches to address systemic challenges in Nigeria’s agriculture sector, with value-chain coordination identified as a key driver for achieving long-term food security.
