Nigeria’s push toward data-driven agricultural policymaking is a critical step in addressing the country’s persistent food insecurity challenges, according to Ibrahim Muhammed (IBM Bangis), co-founder of Commodity.ng
Speaking on the recently unveiled 2026 Agricultural Performance Survey (APS), Ibrahim Muhammed noted that evidence-based planning has become essential for building a resilient and productive agricultural sector capable of feeding Nigeria’s growing population.
The Federal Government, through the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, recently reinforced its commitment to agricultural reforms by adopting stronger data-backed policies aimed at improving food production, reducing market instability, and strengthening national food security.
The survey, conducted by the National Agricultural Extension and Research Liaison Services (NAERLS) in partnership with state agencies and development institutions, examined the performance of Nigeria’s agricultural sector during the 2025 wet season. The report covered critical areas such as crop production patterns, mechanisation levels, technology adoption, climate-related challenges, and farmer productivity constraints.
According to Ibrahim Muhammed, the inclusion of advanced datasets like the Farm Family Census and Tractor Census represents a major shift in how agricultural decisions are being made in Nigeria.
“For years, one of the biggest challenges facing Nigeria’s agricultural ecosystem has been the lack of reliable real-time intelligence. You cannot solve food insecurity effectively without accurate data on production, market supply, farmer capacity, and commodity movement,” he said.
The APS report revealed improved production levels across major staple crops including rice, maize, sorghum, millet, cowpea, cassava, and yam compared to the previous year. This increase contributed to moderate reductions in food prices across several regions of the country.
However, the report also identified ongoing structural challenges such as high farming input costs, poor mechanisation access, flooding, pest infestations, livestock disease outbreaks, and significant post-harvest losses, especially in parts of the North-Central and South-West regions.
Ibrahim Muhammed explained that while increased production is encouraging, Nigeria must now focus on improving agricultural market efficiency, supply chain transparency, and commodity distribution systems.
“Food production alone is not enough. Farmers can produce more and still remain poor if markets are inefficient, storage systems are weak, and commodity pricing lacks transparency. This is where digital agricultural intelligence platforms become extremely important,” he added.
He further explained that Commodity.ng is positioned to support the government’s vision by providing real-time commodity price tracking, agricultural market intelligence, production insights, and data analytics that can help policymakers, agribusinesses, traders, and farmers make informed decisions.
According to him, platforms like Commodity.ng can help bridge the information gap between rural producers and urban markets by improving visibility into commodity demand, pricing trends, logistics challenges, and regional supply fluctuations.
“At Commodity.ng, we believe agricultural data should not remain inside reports alone. It should become accessible intelligence that farmers, investors, processors, and policymakers can use daily to make smarter decisions,” Ibrahim Muhammed stated.
He also emphasized that digital tools can significantly reduce post-harvest losses by helping stakeholders identify surplus-producing regions early, predict market shortages, and optimize commodity movement across Nigeria’s food value chain.
In addition, Ibrahim Muhammed commended the Federal Government’s commitment to expanding mechanization, scaling climate-smart agriculture, strengthening extension systems, and supporting women and youth participation in farming.
He noted that these reforms, if consistently implemented alongside private-sector innovation and digital infrastructure, could accelerate Nigeria’s transition toward a more self-sufficient and export-driven agricultural economy.
“Nigeria has the land, population, and entrepreneurial energy to become a global agricultural powerhouse. What we need now is sustained investment in agricultural intelligence, mechanization, logistics, and technology-enabled market systems,” he concluded.
The renewed emphasis on data integrity and evidence-based agricultural planning is increasingly being seen as a major foundation for solving Nigeria’s food inflation crisis and building long-term food security resilience.
