Governor pushes land aggregation drive to scale up agricultural productivity

Governor Hyacinth Alia of Benue State has reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to large-scale agricultural transformation through strategic land aggregation and improved access to farm inputs.

The governor gave the reassurance as he officially flagged off the 2026 Fertilizer and Other Farm Inputs Sales and Distribution Exercise in Makurdi, the state capital.

He announced that his administration has subsidized fertilizer by 51%, disclosing that the product will be sold to farmers at a subsidised rate of ₦28,000 per bag, while the government bears the subsidy to cushion production costs and support smallholder farmers across the state.

This was confirmed in a statement issued on Thursday by the Chief Press Secretary to the Benue State Governor, Sir Tersoo Kula.

According to the statement, Alia spoke during the ceremony today at the Benue Fertilizer Blending Plant, Industrial Layout, Makurdi.

The Governor described the initiative not merely as a seasonal intervention, but as a deliberate policy direction aimed at boosting food security, expanding cultivated farmlands through land aggregation, and driving rural economic prosperity across the state.

He noted that Benue’s pride as the “Food Basket of the Nation” must be sustained through modern agricultural practices, stressing that government interventions are being expanded to ensure farmers have access to quality inputs, improved seedlings, herbicides, and support systems needed to increase productivity and commercialise agriculture at scale.

Governor Alia announced that the 2026 input distribution exercise will cover all 23 local government areas, with strengthened transparency mechanisms to ensure equitable access and eliminate diversion.

He said that the administration has also increased the volume of fertiliser and related inputs to match the expanding farming population and the growing acreage under cultivation through land aggregation initiatives.

According to him, the broader agricultural agenda of the administration includes rural road development for evacuation of farm produce, irrigation expansion for all-season farming, agro-processing and value addition to reduce post-harvest losses, as well as capacity-building programmes for farmers, youths, and women engaged in agribusiness.

The Governor urged farmers to take full advantage of the programme, while charging officials of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security to uphold transparency, fairness, and accountability in the distribution process, warning against any form of diversion or malpractice.

Earlier, the Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Security, Hon. Benjamin Ashaver, declared that the era of substandard fertiliser distribution in Benue State was over.

He however warned that strict enforcement mechanisms had been put in place to deal with any form of bypass or malpractice in the system.