The Equipment Leasing Registration Authority (ELRA) and the National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in Abuja to expand farmers’ access to modern mechanised machinery.
The cross-agency alliance establishes an affordable equipment leasing framework designed to let smallholders, farming cooperatives, and private agribusinesses acquire critical field assets without the crippling financial overhead of outright commercial purchases.
The landmark agreement was formalised by the Registrar and Chief Executive Officer of ELRA, Mr Donald Wokoma, and the Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of NADF, Mr Mohammed Ibrahim.
According to an official statement released by ELRA’s Head of Media and Corporate Communication, Adebola Brookslyn Sunday, the intervention focuses on deploying commercial tractors, heavy harvesters, automated irrigation systems, and post-harvest crop processing equipment through viable financing models. The initial operational timeline for the agreement is set for a firm duration of four years, with a built-in renewal clause subject to bilateral review.
To tackle the funding constraints currently hindering local agricultural expansion, the two agencies will deploy diverse leasing structures permitted under the Equipment Leasing Act, including finance leases, operating leases, and lease-to-own arrangements.
Mr Wokoma noted that this legal structure will effectively lower capital barriers for local producers while simultaneously offering statutory security to attract private sector investors and heavy equipment manufacturing firms into national agricultural development projects.
Under the operational terms of the pact, both organisations will maintain distinct administrative responsibilities to protect the joint asset pipeline. ELRA takes on the role of overseeing the statutory registration of all lease agreements, maintaining comprehensive ownership records, and ensuring strict regulatory compliance.
Conversely, the NADF is mandated to provide dedicated technical advisory services and facilitate grassroots capacity-building programmes to train local operators on how to effectively manage and maintain the leased mechanised infrastructure.
Source: The Sun News
