Nigeria spends $10bn annually on food imports – FG

The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Sen. Abubakar Kyari, says Nigeria spends $10 billion annually on agro-imports, including wheat and fish.

Kyari disclosed this at the First Bank of Nigeria Ltd., 2025 Agric and Export Expo, on Tuesday in Lagos.

The minister who decried the rising rate of agro-imports emphasised the need for increased financing of agricultural activities to boost local exports.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the minister was represented at the event by his Special Adviser, Mr Ibrahim Alkali.

Kyari harped on the importance of increasing financing for the nation’s agriculture sector to boost food export revenue generation.

“Nigeria spends over $10 billion annually importing food such as wheat, rice, sugar, fish and even tomato paste.

“Agriculture already contributes 35 per cent of our Gross Domestic Product and employs 35 per cent of our workforce.

“We sit on 85 million hectares of urban land with a youth population of over 70 per cent under the age of 30, yet Nigeria accounts for less than 0.5 per cent of global exports.

“However, Nigeria earns less than $400 million from agro exports, to build a non-oil export economy, we must rethink how we finance agriculture,” he said.

He reiterated the Tinubu’s administration’s stance on ensuring food sovereignty of the country, while insisting on increased financing of agriculture.