• Nigeria to support 50,000 conflict-affected people through agro-business training and aid

• 2.1 million hectares of farmland are abandoned due to violence and instability

• Officials push for a long-term, non-military approach to reduce violent extremism

The Nigerian government is stepping up efforts to curb insecurity by shifting part of its strategy away from the battlefield and toward the farm. On May 23, the National Counter Terrorism Center (NCTC) signed a partnership with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) to begin a pilot program that aims to rehabilitate former fighters and rebuild communities harmed by conflict.

Backed by the European Union, the Czech Republic, and the International Organization for Migration, the program will start in Zamfara and Gombe states. The goal is to help 50,000 people increase their income by 60% and set up 5,000 new agro-businesses. This will be achieved through hands-on training, better access to farm inputs, and financial inclusion support.

This project comes at a time when Nigerian authorities estimate that between 120 million and 150 million people are living under some form of insecurity. The government says the impact stretches across all sectors, with agriculture being one of the most vulnerable.

Armed groups, rural bandits, and ongoing clashes between farmers and herders have forced thousands of producers off their land, especially in northern and central Nigeria. Farming cycles have been disrupted, and large portions of farmland have been left unused.

According to Nigeria’s 2024 Wet Season Agricultural Performance Report, released by the National Agricultural Extension and Research Liaison Services (NAERLS), violent incidents are on the rise. Since 2016, insecurity in rural areas has grown steadily. Between 2022 and 2024, farmer-herder conflicts were recorded in 31 states, kidnappings in 10 states, and crop theft in 20 states. Other threats include livestock theft and rural banditry.

The same report highlights that 2.1 million hectares of farmland in northern Nigeria are now inaccessible due to security threats. Niger State is the hardest hit, with 350,000 hectares abandoned, followed by Zamfara with 323,000 hectares, Borno with 300,000, Katsina with 210,000, and Benue with 200,000. In many places, once-productive lands are now classified as high-risk areas, making it harder for farmers to get inputs, reach markets, or receive agricultural support.

This insecurity is now affecting national food security. The maize belt, made up of Borno, Niger, Plateau, Katsina, Gombe, Bauchi, Kogi, Kaduna, Oyo, and Taraba, accounts for almost 44% of Nigeria’s total maize output. Nearly half of the unused farmland in the country falls within this belt.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently projected that Nigeria’s paddy rice harvest will drop by 5% to 7.9 million tons in the 2025–2026 season, largely due to reduced farming in these insecure regions.

Costs tied to insecurity are showing up elsewhere too. According to the NAERLS report, the cost of animal traction services rose in 2024, especially in the northeast. This jump is likely linked to rising cattle theft and the impact of rural banditry, which have made work animals harder to find.

Through this new rehabilitation project, the Nigerian government wants to use agriculture as a pathway to economic recovery and social healing. The idea is to support long-term peace by addressing the root causes of violent extremism, including poverty, social exclusion, and lack of opportunity.

National Security Adviser Mallam Nuhu Ribadu said that while military action remains necessary, it is no longer enough. He stressed that peace must come from solving the deeper problems that push people into extremism in the first place. That belief now shapes the government’s broader strategy.

Abubakar Maiha, the Minister of Livestock Development, added that people who are productively engaged are far less likely to be drawn into crime, no matter how tempting it might seem.

For Kenton Dashiell, Deputy Director General of IITA, the goal is not quick results, but lasting change. He said the aim is to help communities thrive. When people have food, stable incomes, and decent living conditions, he added, the entire society becomes more secure.