FG rolls out improved seeds to cushion impact of delayed rainfall

The Federal Government on Thursday launched the nationwide distribution of Renewed Hope agricultural seeds to farmers across the country.

Speaking at the official launch in Jigawa State, the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, said the initiative was aimed at mitigating the effects of seed shortages and delayed rainfall.

He said the intervention was approved by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to ensure that affected farmers in all participating states receive improved seeds within the remaining planting window.

Kyari said the programme was being implemented as a national response to climate-related disruptions affecting farming communities across northern and southern Nigeria, with priority given to states experiencing irregular rainfall.

He noted that many farmers across the country, including those in Jigawa and other northern states, had suffered significant losses after early rains were followed by prolonged dry spells that destroyed crops already planted.

He said the intervention was designed as a nationwide recovery support mechanism to help farmers recover part of the season that had been lost.

“The rains came this season, and the rains held back. Farmers who had planted in good faith watched their fields fail. They lost seed, fertilizer, labour and money, and most importantly, they lost valuable weeks of the farming season,” the minister said.

He recalled that the Nigerian Meteorological Agency had earlier warned that several states across the federation could experience dry spells of up to 21 days between June and August, a forecast that largely materialised in multiple regions.

According to him, “‎Under the national programme, each participating state will receive 32 metric tonnes of certified cowpea seed, nine metric tonnes of certified groundnut seed and 8.35 metric tonnes of certified sesame seed, to be distributed to identified farming communities based on need.”

Kyari said the seeds had already been deployed to Jigawa and other beneficiary states, with about 5,000 smallholder farming households in Jigawa State expected to benefit from the first phase of the rollout.

He explained that cowpea, groundnut and sesame were selected because they are short-duration crops capable of maturing within the remaining rainfall period across affected ecological zones.

According to him, the improved varieties would give farmers a realistic opportunity to harvest despite the setback caused by delayed rainfall, while contributing to national food security targets.

The minister stressed that all the seeds being distributed under the programme were certified by the National Agricultural Seed Council, which oversees seed quality testing, regulates approved varieties nationwide and combats the circulation of counterfeit seeds.

He said the intervention forms part of a broader national strategy to strengthen Nigeria’s seed system under the National Agricultural Technology and Innovation Policy, including variety registration, expansion of laboratory capacity and digital seed traceability across the country.

Governor Umar Namadi, represented by his deputy, Engr Aminu Usman Gumel, commended the Federal Government for the timely intervention, saying it would help reduce the impact of delayed rainfall and restore hope to farmers.

The National Chairman of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) also commended the Federal Government on behalf of farmers, urging beneficiaries to make effective use of the support to achieve the programme’s objectives.