The Vice President, Agriculture, of the Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), Olasetemi Bode Thompson, has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to declare a State of Emergency on Food Production and introduce a national policy aimed at ensuring that no productive land remains idle.
Thompson made the call in an open letter to the President on Tuesday, titled “Operation No Idle Land: A Call for a National Policy on Productive Land Use and a State of Emergency for Food Security.”
He said Nigeria had the land, human resources and natural resources required to become one of the world’s leading agricultural economies, but lacked a coordinated strategy to translate its agricultural potential into food production, employment and economic prosperity.
According to him, his advocacy was informed by agricultural study tours and farm visits to the United States, Canada, Israel and several European countries since his appointment as ACCI Vice President, Agriculture, in December 2023.
He said the level of agricultural innovation, mechanisation, efficient land utilisation and value-chain integration observed in those countries demonstrated what Nigeria could achieve with the right policies and investments.
Thompson argued that significant portions of Nigeria’s potentially productive land remained underutilised or completely idle despite rising food prices, unemployment and growing concerns over food security.
He stressed that the challenge was not simply the availability of land, but the provision of finance, infrastructure, technology, security, markets and an enabling policy environment to make such land productive.
The ACCI official proposed Operation No Idle Land as a national framework to encourage the productive use of land for agriculture, agribusiness, agro-processing, industry and other approved economic activities.
He emphasised that the initiative should not be punitive or become a vehicle for indiscriminate land confiscation.
Rather, he proposed incentives and support for landowners to cultivate their land, lease underutilised properties to farmers, cooperatives and investors, or participate in organised schemes that bring together land, capital, technology and market access.
He also called for any government intervention involving abandoned or unlawfully held land to strictly comply with constitutional provisions, existing laws and due process.
“The objective must remain productive utilization, not indiscriminate confiscation,” he said.
Thompson further urged the Federal Government to declare a State of Emergency for Food Production backed by a measurable and time-bound national action plan.
He said the programme should bring together the Federal, State and Local Governments, private investors, farmers, financial institutions, research institutions and development partners to boost domestic food production and reduce Nigeria’s vulnerability to supply disruptions and excessive dependence on imports.
Among the areas he identified for urgent intervention were affordable agricultural financing, irrigation, mechanisation, improved seeds and fertilisers, extension services, research and technology, rural roads, storage and processing facilities.
Others include improved security for farming communities, development of agricultural value chains and agro-processing clusters, sustainable market access and increased private-sector participation.
The ACCI Vice President said Nigeria could draw lessons from countries such as the Netherlands, Denmark and Germany, which have developed highly productive agricultural sectors through technology, research, cooperative farming, infrastructure, logistics and strong connections between agriculture and industry.
He noted that land alone could not guarantee agricultural prosperity.
“Productive land, supported by technology, finance, infrastructure, knowledge, security and markets, does,” he stated.
Thompson proposed a six-point implementation framework for the initiative, beginning with a national land audit and mapping to identify underutilised agricultural and economically productive land.
He also recommended the creation of land banks and agricultural clusters, incentives for landowners who voluntarily put their land into productive use, and deliberate measures to increase the participation of youths and women in agriculture.
Other recommendations include stronger public-private partnerships, as well as enhanced security, monitoring and accountability.
He proposed that progress should be measured through indicators including hectares cultivated, food output, jobs created, investments attracted and reductions in post-harvest losses.
According to Thompson, successful implementation of Operation No Idle Land could create millions of jobs across farming, processing, logistics, storage and distribution while improving food security.
He said the initiative could also reduce food imports and conserve foreign exchange, stimulate rural development, strengthen national security, promote agro-industrialisation and increase Nigeria’s agricultural export potential.
Calls for National Stakeholders’ Summit
The ACCI official urged President Tinubu to convene a National Stakeholders’ Summit on Productive Land Use and Food Security to develop the proposal into a practical and legally sound national programme.
He said the summit should involve the Federal and State Governments, National Assembly, traditional institutions, farmers’ organisations, organised private sector, financial institutions, research institutions and development partners.
Thompson said the ACCI remained committed to supporting initiatives that promote investment, enterprise development, food security and sustainable economic growth.
He maintained that Nigeria could no longer afford to have millions of hectares of potentially productive land lying idle while millions of citizens remained unemployed and households struggled with food affordability.
“Let us turn idle land into productive assets, agricultural potential into economic power, and our youthful population into a productive workforce,” he urged.
He described Operation No Idle Land as a national call to action, saying every productive hectare should contribute to feeding Nigerians, creating employment and strengthening the country’s economy.
