As part of its commitment to building sustainable agricultural capacity, a leading consultancy firm, Farmdev Consult has officially awarded N300,000 in research support grants to six promising final-year agriculture students from top universities during the Africa Agribusiness Summit 2026.

The official presentation took place at the recently concluded Africa Agribusiness Summit held at Zonta Multipurpose Hall in Ibadan. Each of the six selected undergraduate researchers received a N50,000 cash grant to directly fund field research, data collection, and laboratory analysis for their final-year thesis projects. The initiative, named the Farmdev Agribusiness Grant, was launched to relieve severe financial pressures on final-year students while actively driving research that solves real-world farming challenges.

Speaking during the award ceremony, the Managing Director of Farmdev Consult, Mr. Samuel Oluwatobi, emphasised that true agricultural transformation in Africa begins with empowering young scholars who are actively studying the field.

The six beneficiaries were selected based on the practical impact and quality of their proposed research covering critical areas such as climate-smart techniques, low-cost pest control, and efficient irrigation systems. The awardees include Emiola Deborah Favour, Victor Oluwaseyi Aniobia, and Jegede Senior from the University of Ibadan; Ogunde Precious and Abolade Abdullahi from the Federal College of Forestry, Ibadan; and Nwigwe Onyinye Christiana from the Federal University of Technology, Minna.

Detailing their project goals in their grant proposals, the beneficiaries outlined how the financial backing will transform their academic research into field solutions. “With this grant, I will secure essential fertilisers and pesticides needed to evaluate cowpea resistance against severe insect infestation,” Favour said.

Similarly, Precious noted: “This funding covers the materials for testing neem and moringa extracts as natural alternatives to synthetic insecticides on African eggplant.”

Highlighting the economic focus of his research, Aniobia explained: “With this grant, I will deploy field extension agents and cover logistics to collect clean, verifiable data on household food consumption among cassava farmers in Akinyele Local Government Area.”

Delivering a vote of thanks on behalf of all the beneficiaries, student leader Comrade Jegede Senior expressed deep appreciation to Farmdev Consult and Mr. Samuel Oluwatobi for recognizing their hard work and stepping in at a critical stage of their academic journeys. He noted that the support would significantly ease the burden of research expenses.

Farmdev Consult, an agricultural management firm specialising in farm acquisition, setup, and operational advisory, reaffirmed that supporting academic research remains a core pillar of its mission to transform traditional farming into structured corporate assets across Africa.