The Executive Secretary of the National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF), Mohammed Ibrahim, has called on African countries to shift their focus from simply financing agricultural research to creating innovation ecosystems that connect scientific discoveries with industry and market demand.

Ibrahim appealed the High-Level Ministerial Dialogue on Sustainable Financing for Agricultural Research, Development and Innovation (AR4D), which took place on the sidelines of the 9th Africa Agriculture Science Week (AASW9) in Abuja.

The dialogue was organised by NADF in partnership with the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) under the theme: “Financing Africa’s Agricultural Future: Mobilising Strategic Investments for Science, Innovation and Transformation.”

Addressing participants, Ibrahim argued that the continent’s biggest obstacle is not access to funding but the absence of systems that effectively transform research into commercially viable innovations.

“Financing is not the major challenge. The real issue is building an ecosystem. Agricultural research should go beyond academic publications to produce innovations capable of attracting investment, commercialisation and large-scale adoption.

“An effective agricultural innovation system must rest on three interconnected pillars; government institutions that provide policy and funding, research institutions that generate knowledge, and industries that transform research into marketable solutions.

“Research financing naturally follows innovations that demonstrate economic value. We must ask whether many research projects across Africa are sufficiently demand-driven and aligned with market realities.

“As much as research requires funding, the market also requires research. Financing flows where there are returns,” he said.

Ibrahim explained that NADF is financed through statutory budgetary allocations, strategic funding sourced from designated levies and natural resource development contributions, while also mobilising capital through investments and philanthropic support.

He further disclosed that the fund deploys its resources through three principal asset classes debt financing, grants and equity investments with lending provided through participating financial institutions.

Also speaking at the event, the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Sen. Abubakar Kyari, described the establishment of NADF as a strategic intervention designed to reverse decades of underinvestment in Nigeria’s agricultural research system while improving the livelihoods of millions of rural farmers.

Kyari recalled that he supported the creation of the fund during his time in the National Assembly when lawmakers considered the enabling legislation, noting that he had seen the effectiveness of dedicated intervention agencies in other sectors.

The minister observed that although agriculture accounts for about one-quarter of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), rural communities responsible for producing most of the country’s food have experienced little progress over the years.

“About 85 per cent of the food we consume comes from smallholder farmers, yet their living conditions have remained virtually unchanged. That shows there is a structural imbalance in the agricultural economy,” he said.

According to Kyari, declining agricultural productivity is being driven by limited access to quality seeds, inadequate financing, shrinking arable land, climate change and years of neglect affecting agricultural research institutions.

“Many farmers now resort to planting harvested grains as seeds because they cannot afford certified planting materials, resulting in lower yields and declining productivity.

“I commend NADF for conducting a comprehensive baseline assessment of Nigeria’s 16 agricultural research institutes and 17 colleges of agriculture. This exercise is a critical step towards revitalising the country’s research infrastructure.

“This ministerial dialogue forms part of broader efforts to develop sustainable financing models for AR4D across Africa,” he said.

Source: nannews.ng