AGRICULTURE
Abia State Govt. Distributes Farm Inputs to Lawmakers, Targets 15,322 More Farmers Across State
The Abia State Government has intensified its agricultural intervention programme with the distribution of farm inputs to members of the Abia State House of Assembly for onward delivery to profiled farmers across their respective constituencies.
The latest intervention, coordinated by the Abia State Ministry of Agriculture, forms part of the ongoing Farmers’ Inputs Support Programme of the administration of His Excellency Dr. Alex Chioma Otti, OFR, designed to raise agricultural productivity, empower smallholder farmers and strengthen food security across the state.
Speaking during the handover exercise, the honourable Commissioner for Agriculture, Dr. Cliff Agbaeze, FCIB, explained that the initiative builds on the success of the first phase of the programme, which was flagged off on July 10, 2026.
According to him, the first phase reached 3,312 farmers across the 184 wards in Abia, while the second phase is targeting an additional 15,322 farmers across the state.
Under the current phase, 615 profiled farmers will receive farm inputs through members of the State House of Assembly. The Commissioner disclosed that the beneficiaries had already been contacted directly to facilitate follow-up and ensure that the inputs get to the intended recipients.
The farm inputs being distributed include improved seedlings, fertilizers and agrochemicals, with the intervention aimed at increasing food production, strengthening the capacity of farmers and creating sustainable economic opportunities within the agricultural sector.
Dr. Agbaeze stressed that the programme is data-driven and targeted, with beneficiaries selected from the Ministry of Agriculture’s Farmers’ Database. This approach, he said, is intended to ensure that genuine and properly profiled farmers benefit from the government’s intervention.
Beyond the constituency-based distribution, the Ministry is also extending the programme to all 17 Local Government Areas through their respective Mayors. Umuahia North and Bende Local Government Areas have already taken delivery of their farm inputs following the commencement of the LGA-level distribution last week.
The distribution is expected to continue progressively until all 17 LGAs are covered, giving farmers across Abia access to the support required to expand production and improve their livelihoods.
To ensure that the inputs translate into measurable improvements in farm productivity, the Ministry is partnering with Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike (MOUAU) through its Agricultural Business Incubation Centre for training, capacity building, extension services and hands-on monitoring of beneficiaries.
The Director of MOUAU’s Agricultural Business Incubation Centre, Dr. Ogbonnaya Oteh, explained that the partnership would provide beneficiaries with the practical knowledge and technical skills needed to properly utilise the inputs and maximise their yields.
He further highlighted the importance of extension services and hands-on monitoring in tracking farmers’ progress, providing technical assistance, identifying challenges at an early stage and ensuring that the objectives of the intervention are achieved.
Also speaking on behalf of the State House of Assembly, the Chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture, Hon. Dennis Rowland Chinwendu (Caesar), commended the administration of Governor Alex Otti for the agricultural intervention.
He pledged the commitment of the lawmakers to ensuring that the inputs reach the farmers for whom they were provided, adding that the legislators would work with Traditional Rulers, Ward Leaders and Extension Agents to promote transparency and effective implementation across their constituencies.
With the expansion of the Farmers’ Inputs Support Programme, the Abia State Government is positioning agriculture as a key driver of food security, rural economic development and job creation, while strengthening direct support for farmers through a transparent and data-based intervention system.
The programme reflects the government’s broader commitment to building a productive and sustainable agricultural sector capable of increasing food supply, improving farmers’ incomes and opening up new economic opp
ortunities across Abia State.