The Benue State Government has endorsed and launched a five-year Strategic Food Security Plan aimed at revitalising agricultural production, improving farmers’ livelihoods and addressing the impact of insecurity on food production across the state.
The plan was recently unveiled under the Enhancing Food Security and Peacebuilding in Nigeria through Strategic Planning Project (EFSPP) and brought together government officials, farmers, academics, traditional rulers and other stakeholders.
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Speaking at the launch, the Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Security, Benjamin Ashaver, urged ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) to take ownership of the plan to ensure its successful implementation.
Represented by the Governor’s Technical Adviser on Agriculture, Danjuma Adejo, the commissioner also called on local government councils, traditional institutions and farming communities to embrace the initiative and sustain the collaboration that produced the strategy.
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Mr Ashaver formally endorsed the state’s five-year food security plan. He reaffirmed Governor Hyacinth Alia’s commitment to its implementation, including a mid-term review in 2028 and an end-term evaluation in 2031.
He commended the policy team of the Supply Chain Research and Innovation Hub (SCRIH), led by Ajibola Oladipo and Shalem Shiekuma, for developing the plan.
The commissioner, however, lamented that years of attacks by armed herders had displaced thousands of farmers, disrupted farming activities and reduced agricultural output in the state.
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“Benue State’s agricultural fortunes have, in recent years, been tested by forces beyond the ordinary challenges of farming. Insecurity has driven farmers from their farmlands. Displacement has fractured our planting and harvest seasons. Land-use conflicts between herders and farming communities have destroyed the trust that once held rural communities together,” he said.
Presenting the Strategic Food Security Plan to the state government, Akange Edward said the document provides a framework for stabilising agricultural production, strengthening land governance, rebuilding rural economies and improving logistics and market systems.
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According to him, the strategy is designed to tackle the underlying factors undermining food production and rural livelihoods across the state.
Mr Edward said the recurring attacks on farming communities had exposed deeper structural challenges affecting both agriculture and peacebuilding.
“The challenge confronting Benue is not merely agricultural underperformance, but structural fragility at the intersection of food systems and conflict dynamics,” he said.
He noted that although Benue is widely regarded as Nigeria’s “Food Basket of the Nation” because of its fertile land, abundant water resources and resilient farming population, insecurity, displacement, land-use conflicts, climate pressures and inadequate infrastructure have significantly weakened agricultural productivity.
The Strategic Food Security Plan is expected to serve as a roadmap for improving food production, strengthening resilience among farming communities and supporting sustainable peace and economic development in the state.
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