The Niger State authorities has provided about 100,000 hectares of land to the Federal Authorities for the implementation of an built-in Mass Housing and Agricultural Settlement Mission geared toward boosting meals safety, creating jobs and driving inclusive financial development.
The dedication was introduced by Governor Mohammed Umar Bago on the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Niger State authorities and the Ministry of Finance Included (MOFI), underneath the anchorage of the Federal Ministry of Finance, in Abuja.
Minister of State for Finance, Dr Doris Uzoka-Anite, stated the MoU represented a powerful demonstration of cooperative federalism and strategic alignment between the Federal Authorities and Niger State.
She defined that whereas housing is a basic pillar of improvement, the Niger mission intentionally connects housing with agriculture, meals safety and financial productiveness.
“This mission is designed not simply as a housing intervention, however as a settlement framework for farmers geared toward strengthening agricultural worth chains and bettering livelihoods,” she stated.
Governor Bago described the settlement as a serious step in direction of the realisation of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, notably within the areas of meals safety, mass housing and poverty discount. He stated the mission goes past coverage declarations, noting that it represents a concrete effort to translate nationwide priorities into measurable outcomes on the state stage.
“This isn’t only a signing ceremony; it’s a second of supply,” the governor stated, including that Niger State was ready to function a pilot for a mannequin that integrates housing improvement immediately into farming communities.
In line with him, the initiative will concentrate on constructing mass housing inside agricultural settlements to allow farmers to dwell near their farmlands, enhance productiveness and scale back insecurity. He defined that by clustering rural dwellers into structured communities with entry to infrastructure, authorities might deal with challenges equivalent to rural-urban migration, insecure settlements and post-harvest losses.
Bago stated the state’s huge land, water sources and mechanisation capability made it well-suited for the mission, stressing that affordability and sustainability would information implementation. He famous that the supply of land would assist massive, contiguous farm estates that permit for environment friendly mechanisation, irrigation and agro-processing.
The governor added that the settlements can be developed with entry roads, faculties, healthcare amenities, renewable vitality, water techniques and grazing reserves, whereas additionally supporting crop manufacturing, livestock and processing actions.
He stated the mannequin had already been examined in resettlement programmes for internally displaced individuals, the place households had been supplied with housing and farmland linked to assured offtake preparations.
Uzoka-Anite famous that Niger State is one among Nigeria’s most agriculturally endowed states, however challenges equivalent to insecure settlements, insufficient infrastructure and rural-urban migration had continued to restrict productiveness. She stated the built-in settlements would supply safe and well-planned communities strategically positioned to assist agricultural manufacturing, storage, processing and entry to markets.
In line with her, anchoring farmers in steady communities would improve productiveness, scale back post-harvest losses, enhance safety and encourage youth participation in agriculture. She added that the mission would additionally generate jobs throughout agriculture, development, agro-processing, renewable vitality, logistics and group providers, whereas stimulating demand for native industries equivalent to cement, metal and transportation.
The minister highlighted the strategic function of MOFI within the initiative, noting that the company would deploy its experience in asset optimisation, mission structuring and personal capital mobilisation. She defined that the financing mannequin blends public belongings with personal funding to make sure sustainability, transparency and shared threat, whereas lowering fiscal strain on authorities.
“This method permits authorities to concentrate on coverage coordination and oversight, whereas leveraging personal sector effectivity and scale,” she stated.
Additionally talking, the Managing Director of MOFI, Dr Armstrong Takang, stated the initiative was geared toward closing the hole between coverage formulation and actual financial affect by linking housing on to income-generating actions.
Takang famous that agriculture stays Nigeria’s largest contributor to gross home product, making it important to combine farming communities into main improvement programmes. He stated earlier housing and vitality interventions had struggled as a result of beneficiaries lacked the earnings wanted to maintain them.
“For housing, vitality and different providers to be sustainable, folks will need to have a transparent line of sight to earnings,” he stated.
He defined that the built-in communities would supply farmland, inputs, infrastructure and entry to markets, whereas making certain that housing stays inexpensive and of fine high quality.
He added that every housing unit might generate not less than 12 full-time jobs throughout development, with extra employment coming from farming, processing and allied actions.
In line with Takang, the mission is designed as an impact-driven platform able to attracting personal and improvement finance, noting that traders are more and more eager about scalable fashions backed by robust authorities dedication.
Governor Bago stated the MoU alerts Niger State’s emergence as a pilot for a nationwide mannequin that integrates housing, agriculture, infrastructure and personal capital. Officers on the ceremony stated the Federal Ministry of Finance would supply coverage coordination and institutional oversight to make sure the mission strikes swiftly from settlement to execution.
They expressed confidence that the initiative would strengthen meals safety, create sustainable livelihoods, scale back poverty and contribute meaningfully to financial development in Niger State and throughout Nigeria.
