Nigeria takes a decisive step toward smarter fertilizer use and healthier soils
4 February 2026
Soil health remains a critical pillar of food security and sustainable agriculture in West Africa and Sahel. This was a fundamental highlight of the Lomé Declaration 2023, where maintaining and restoring soil fertility was deemed essential to meeting the food needs of a rapidly growing and urbanizing population. Across the region, preserving soil fertility, restoring degraded lands, and improving soil nutrition are central to achieving food sovereignty and reducing hunger.
Positioning itself at the forefront of this agenda, Nigeria has taken decisive steps to secure a food-secure future by confronting a long-standing challenge in its agricultural system. The lack of precise soil information has, over the years, contributed to declining soil health, low yields, inefficient fertilizer use, and rising production costs, and these challenges can only be addressed through science, data, and sustained technical collaboration.
Against this backdrop, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (FMAFS) and the IITA–CGIAR have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to enhance soil health, improve fertilizer efficiency, and boost farm productivity in Nigeria. Speaking at the signing ceremony, Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, described soil health as the foundation of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s food security agenda. He noted that beyond food availability and affordability, the administration is equally focused on nutritional quality and safety.
“If the soil is not healthy, no matter the effort, the desired results cannot be achieved,” the minister said.
The MoU was signed by IITA Director General, Dr Simeon Ehui, and Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Dr Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi. The agreement supports the implementation of the Nigeria Farmers Soil Health Scheme (NFSHS) and the development of a national soil information system. All activities under the MoU will be implemented through the Regional Hub for Fertilizer and Soil Health for West Africa and the Sahel, hosted by IITA.
“The Regional Hub is designed to be the technical backbone of soil health and fertilizer use for West Africa and the Sahel,” said Dr Ehui. “With Nigeria’s Soil Health Initiative, the Hub gains a visible champion that elevates soil health from a technical agenda to a political one. It creates demand and urgency for the Hub’s outputs—from digital soil maps and fertilizer recommendations to laboratory standards. Nigeria’s example shows how regional cooperation can deliver tangible national benefits.”
Dr Ehui described the partnership as both a policy and delivery commitment, aimed at replacing generalized fertilizer advice with data-driven, location-specific recommendations tailored to farmers’ realities.
The MoU deepens collaboration between IITA, a leading research-for-development institution addressing hunger, poverty, and land degradation, and FMAFS, Nigeria’s lead agency for agricultural productivity and food security policy. Together, the institutions will tackle persistent soil fertility constraints and fertilizer inefficiencies through advanced technologies, applied research, and regional expertise.
The agreement builds on the Nigeria Farmers Soil Health Scheme, launched on 14 October 2025, which promotes precise soil testing and crop-specific recommendations to support sustainable intensification and climate-resilient farming systems nationwide. Through the Regional Hub, IITA serves on the National Technical Committee, supporting FMAFS in translating soil health policy into practical, scalable action.
“IITA, through the Regional Hub, is actively engaged with FMAFS—at the strategic level, shaping national plans, and at the ground level, where soil sampling is underway and fertilizers adapted to crops such as maize and rice are being developed,” said Lionel Axel Kadja, Director of the Regional Hub. “We remain committed to generating agricultural innovations that combat malnutrition, poverty, and hunger across Africa.”
Launched in 2024 as a sub-program of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and hosted by IITA in Ibadan, the Regional Hub brings together a strong consortium of partners, including IFDC, OCP Africa, the African Plant Nutrition Institute (APNI), Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P), and ISRIC – World Soil Information. The Hub receives financial support from the World Bank through CGIAR’s Accelerating Impacts of CGIAR Climate Research for Africa (AICCRA) project, as well as from OCP Africa.
According to Dr Ehui, the partnership will deliver crop- and location-specific fertilizer recommendations for key staples such as maize and rice. It will enhance the application of Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM) and the 4Rs of nutrient stewardship—right source, right rate, right time, and right place. It will also strengthen laboratory standards, expand digital soil information systems, build national capacity, and establish monitoring frameworks to track results.
“The real test of this MoU will be outcomes—healthier soils, higher fertilizer use efficiency, stronger national capacity, and accelerated progress toward food security,” he said.
Emphasizing that the partnership is to support the objectives of the recently launched Nigeria Farmers Soil Health Scheme, Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi explained that the scheme is designed to remove guesswork from farming. “Based on science, different soil types are suited to different crops and require different nutrient management approaches. This scheme equips farmers with the data they need to make informed decisions—what to plant, where to plant, and how to fertilize,” he said.
The partnership will also support fertilizer manufacturers by providing the data needed to produce crop-specific and location-specific blends, while strengthening institutional capacity within the Ministry and across soil health agencies. By expanding access to soil testing and diagnostics, the initiative lays the foundation for precision agriculture, enabling farmers to apply exactly what crops need, where they need it, and when they need it—reducing costs, improving yields, and restoring soil health.
About the Regional Hub for Fertilizer and Soil Health for West Africa and the Sahel
The Regional Hub for Fertilizer and Soil Health for West Africa and the Sahel is a collaborative initiative that brings together leading research, development, and private-sector partners to deliver science-driven solutions for sustainable agriculture. Hosted by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and supported by organizations including the International Fertilizer Development Center (IFDC), OCP Africa, the African Plant Nutrition Institute (APNI), University Mohammed VI Polytechnic (UM6P), and ISRIC – World Soil Information, the Hub leverages data, soil testing, and fertilizer technologies to enhance productivity, efficiency, and resilience across regional food systems. With financial backing from the World Bank through CGIAR’s AICCRA project and OCP Africa, the Hub is committed to translating research into actionable solutions for farmers and policymakers, promoting long-term soil health, food security, and sustainable development for West Africa and the Sahel.
More information can be found at https://soilhealthwa.iita.org/.
Contributed by Ilerioluwa Oladipupo
