Borno State Governor, Babagana Zulum, has advocated for a shift in tractor ownership to mechanised modern agriculture to boost food security and employment among the youths and women in the country.

He said Nigeria should move beyond simply purchasing thousands of tractors to a more productive, efficient and modern, investment-driven agricultural system in tackling food insecurity and unemployment in the six geo-political zones.

Zulum made the call on Wednesday, while speaking at a high-level National Policy Dialogue on Agricultural Mechanisation organised by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security in Abuja.

The governor identified low productivity, limited technology, inadequate investment and weak value chains as the major challenges facing the agricultural sector in the country.

He emphasised that mechanised agriculture should be adopted as a critical service, providing farmers with timely access to land preparation, precision farming, irrigation and other modern agricultural technologies.

Speaking on Borno’s agricultural transformation initiatives, Zulum noted that massive investment by his administration in agriculture is central to rebuilding livelihoods and restoring communities affected by insecurity and displacement.

Zulum highlighted a four-pronged approach to agricultural mechanisation in Nigeria, including mechanising agriculture to increase productivity and reduce drudgery, digitalising agriculture to improve precision, intelligence, and efficiency, regenerating agricultural resources to ensure long-term sustainability, and investing in infrastructure, technology, and enterprises that will drive the transformation.

Zulum also called for stronger private-sector participation and innovative financing for local manufacturing and assembly of agricultural machinery, irrigation, renewable energy, storage, processing, value addition and youth- and women-led agricultural businesses.

He emphasised that Nigeria must not simply recreate the agriculture of yesterday, but build the agriculture of tomorrow, which should be modern, smart, climate-resilient, productive and inclusive.

The goal, he said, is to build an agricultural economy capable of feeding the nation, competing globally, creating jobs and delivering sustainable prosperity to rural communities.