Nigeria invests $50m in biotech seeds to drive agribusiness growth

Nigeria has invested more than $50 million in biotechnology research and climate-resilient seed development over the past two years as part of a broader strategy to boost agricultural productivity, strengthen agribusiness value chains, and enhance food security, the Director General of the National Agricultural Seeds Council (NASC), Fatuhu Muhammed, has said.

Muhammed disclosed this at the official launch and stakeholders’ engagement of the ProSeV Project, where he delivered a keynote address on Variety Adoption and the Impact on Agribusiness, represented by the Director of Seed Industry Development, Kunle Adeseko.

He described seed as the most critical input in agriculture, noting that the adoption of improved varieties remains central to transforming Nigeria’s agriculture from subsistence production into a competitive, investment-ready agribusiness sector.

According to the NASC boss, improved seed varieties offer multiple benefits, including higher yields, climate resilience, resistance to pests and diseases, better nutrition, and more sustainable farming systems.

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“As the global population grows and climate risks intensify, seed technology will play a decisive role in addressing food security challenges and promoting sustainable agriculture,” he said.

However, Muhammed noted that for years, agribusiness planning in Nigeria had been constrained by weak data on which seed varieties farmers actually grow and how those varieties perform after release.

He explained that reliance on farmer recall, visual identification, and administrative reports often failed to capture realities on farmers’ fields, leading to uncertainty for seed producers, processors, investors, and policymakers.

To close this gap, NASC has been implementing the Institutionalizing Monitoring of Crop Variety Adoption through Genotyping (IMAGE) Project, which uses DNA fingerprinting to scientifically identify varieties grown by farmers and track how they move across the seed system.

“This approach brings accuracy, objectivity and credibility, three attributes modern agribusiness systems require,” Muhammed said.

Through national surveys covering rice, maize, cassava, and cowpea, NASC has generated field-level data on varietal dominance, adoption patterns, and sources of planting material across agro-ecological zones.

He said such evidence is strategic for agribusiness, helping processors forecast supply, investors assess risk, regulators curb counterfeit seeds, and financial institutions gain confidence in agricultural investments.

Muhammed said the seed sector had recorded major gains in recent years, including the distribution of more than 120,000 metric tonnes of certified seeds, directly benefiting millions of smallholder farmers.

He added that the Digital Seed Distribution System, introduced in 2021, had reduced distribution costs by 25 per cent while improving efficiency and traceability.

Through the Nigeria–Netherlands Collaborative Seed Programme, over 20 new seed varieties, including pest-resistant, drought-tolerant, and high-yielding crops, have been released in the last two years.

The DG said women now account for 35 per cent of certified seed users, while over 2.5 million farmers have been trained on good agricultural practices and seed management nationwide.

Highlighting future priorities, Muhammed said the $50 million biotech investment had supported the development of pest-resistant cassava, drought-tolerant millet, and high-yield rice.

He noted that collaborations with global research bodies such as the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture and the CGIAR were accelerating innovation in seed breeding and climate resilience.

On regulation, he said Nigeria’s seed sector had been strengthened through the Plant Variety Protection Act and NASC’s membership of global bodies, including ISTA, UPOV, ISF, OECD Seed Schemes, and AFSTA, positioning the country as a leader in Africa’s seed market.

In a welcome address, the Executive Director of the Foundation for Sustainable Smallholders Solutions (FSSS), Dr. Isaiah Gabriel, said farmers often struggle not from lack of effort but lack of reliable information.

He said the proSeV Project, supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, aims to replace guesswork with performance data so farmers can choose varieties best suited to their land, climate, and markets.

“When farmers adopt the right varieties, productivity improves, agribusiness thrives and the entire value chain benefits,” Gabriel said.

Muhammed concluded that variety adoption sits at the intersection of science, markets, and investment, stressing that data-driven seed systems would help unlock Nigeria’s vast agribusiness potential.