Great Agri Input Limited (GAIL), an FMN Agro Company and provider of agricultural inputs, has flagged off the 2026-2027 wheat planting season in collaboration with the Bank of Agriculture (BOA). The programme targets cultivation across 10,000 hectares in approximately 13 states. Held in Taura Maje, Jigawa State, the event welcomed key community leaders, farmers, cooperatives, leadership from FMN and BOA, media personnel, and community stakeholders. The flag-off featured the distribution of agricultural inputs to farmers, marking the formal commencement of the new planting season.
The initiative forms part of FMN’s ongoing efforts to expand domestic wheat production in Nigeria, strengthen smallholder farmer participation, and deepen local content development across the wheat value chain. The launch location serves as a symbolic point for a wider programme implemented across participating states, with farmers already commencing planting activities in some communities within Jigawa and neighbouring states.
FMN Agro Managing Director and Group Director for Strategic Engagement and Partnership Sadiq Usman said the programme reflects FMN’s continued commitment to building Nigeria’s agricultural production capacity.
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“FMN, through Great Agri Input Ltd for over two decades has been consistent in content localisation in Nigeria with the intent of driving food security and reducing dependency on imported raw materials,” Usman said. “The company’s local content development commitments extend beyond wheat, to maize, soybean, sugarcane, cassava, and palm trees. We are strategically and productively investing across all our key value chains.”
Scaling outgrower model and empowering smallholders
The new planting season builds on five years of progress in local wheat cultivation, which has influenced over 50 percent of Nigeria’s wheat cultivation and aggregation. More than 170,000 farmers have been empowered through training, input support, offtake, and extension services, contributing to over 300,000 direct and indirect jobs for youth. A key driver of this progress is the outgrower model, which connects smallholder farmers to essential inputs, training, extension services, and market opportunities, thereby strengthening domestic production and the supply base for local millers.
Great Agri Input Limited General Manager Tayo Ilori highlighted the importance of superior agricultural inputs and support systems in improving farm productivity.
“Access to superior-quality seeds and fertiliser is fundamental to improving agricultural productivity,” Ilori said. “However, the benefits of quality inputs are maximised when farmers also have access to the right knowledge, agronomic support, and other resources throughout the production cycle.”
To support the scaling of local wheat cultivation in Nigeria, GAIL partnered with the Bank of Agriculture as its financial partner, while the Flour Millers Association of Nigeria remains a collaborator in the initiative.
Financial backing and future production targets
Speaking on behalf of Bank of Agriculture Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Ayo Sotinrin, North-West Zonal Manager Abdulrazaq Datti Salihi stated that the bank was proud to support efforts to strengthen domestic wheat production in Nigeria.
“The Bank of Agriculture is proud to serve as a financial and development partner in efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s domestic wheat production,” Salihi said. “Through our financing interventions, we are working to improve farmers’ access to essential resources and support the growth of local agricultural value chains.”
The programme has expanded local seed production from 572 metric tonnes in the 2021-2022 season to 6,500 metric tonnes in 2025-2026. Over the past three years, more than 30 mechanisation partners have serviced over 8,000 hectares, supporting the adoption of the Borlaug wheat variety alongside three additional high-yielding varieties suited to Nigeria’s climate.
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