The Government of Japan has provided a grant of approximately 587 million Japanese yen ($3.5 million) to strengthen domestic rice seed multiplication, expand agricultural mechanisation, and bolster food security across Nigeria. 

Japanese Ambassador to Nigeria, Hideo Suzuki, disclosed the financial and technical assistance on Monday, August 10, 2026, during the official handover ceremony for the Project for the Enhancement of Rice Seeds Production System at the National Cereals Research Institute (NCRI) in Badeggi, Niger State.

Ambassador Suzuki explained that the intervention aligns with the Federal Government’s Second National Rice Development Strategy (NRDS II, 2020–2030), which aims to double national rice output. 

Highlighting that high-yield certified seeds remain foundational to successful agronomy, Suzuki remarked: “Good seed is the beginning of a good harvest.” 

The grant finances advanced mechanisation tools across the NCRI headquarters in Badeggi and outstations in Niger and Oyo states, comprising 20 medium-sized tractors, three rice transplanters, four small combine harvesters, two excavators, four constant-temperature germination testers, three automatic weather observation systems, and seven flat drying machines.

Commending the gesture, Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security, Alhaji Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi, described the grant as a strategic intervention that advances President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda on import substitution and food sovereignty. 

Chief Representative of JICA Nigeria, Keiji Ishigame, noted that the initiative builds on the Coalition for African Rice Development (CARD) framework launched in 2008 to build local technical capacity. 

Executive Director of NCRI, Dr Mohammed Ndagi-Ishaq, alongside Governor Umaru Bago of Niger State (represented by Malam Muhammed Baba), confirmed that the equipment will significantly expand the multiplication of zinc-biofortified and climate-resilient rice varieties to farmers nationwide.

Source: NAN