By Fatima Saka
ABUJA — The Senate Committee on Agricultural Colleges and Institutions on Wednesday set a strict tone for the 2026 budget defence session, insisting on accountability, measurable impact and grassroots-driven implementation as nearly ₦1 trillion is proposed for institutions under its oversight.
Chairman of the Committee, Senator Sharafadeen Abiodun Alli, PhD, declared at the National Assembly that the 2026 fiscal year must mark a decisive shift from “expenditure over impact” to tangible agricultural productivity, job creation and food sufficiency.
Alli disclosed that out of the ₦1.447 trillion proposed for the Federal Ministry of Agriculture in the 2026 budget, ₦990.49 billion is earmarked for agricultural universities, research institutes and colleges supervised by the Committee.
He said the allocation signals the Federal Government’s intention to strengthen human capital development in agriculture in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
“We possess the figures; now we need the faculty and the focus to bring full implementation to fruition,” the lawmaker stated.
Describing 2025 as a “planting season” marked by funding constraints and capital implementation challenges, Alli said 2026 must become the “harvest season” for Nigeria’s agricultural sector.
He directed all heads of institutions to provide detailed accounts of how 2025 funds were utilised despite implementation bottlenecks, warning that the Committee would closely monitor budget performance once the 2026 Appropriation Act is passed.
“You must explain how released funds were deployed. This Committee will not tolerate expenditure without impact,” he said.
A key highlight of the session was the integration of agricultural institutions into the Renewed Hope Ward Development Programme (RHWDP), described as an ambitious decentralisation initiative targeting Nigeria’s 8,809 wards.
Alli charged institutions to reposition themselves as technical hubs for ward-level economic transformation through economic mapping to identify “One-Ward-One-Product” potentials; deployment of extension personnel and students to train between 1,000 and 2,000 economically active individuals per ward; and accelerated seed multiplication under the ₦3.5 billion Renewed Hope Agricultural Intervention Fund to ensure high-yield seedlings reach rural communities.
Following are institutions scrutinized by the committee: the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria, National Horticultural Research Institute, Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria, National Root Crops Research Institute, National Cereals Research Institute and Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, among others.
Others are federal colleges of agriculture, cooperative colleges and universities of agriculture spread across the federation.
The Committee also demanded clarity on internally generated revenue (IGR) profiles of institutions, particularly those with capital-heavy budgets, and sought full disclosure of recruitment exercises conducted in 2025, alongside justification for proposed employment plans in 2026.
Senator Alli further added that the success of the 2026 budget would be measured by increased food production, stronger research-to-farm linkages and the rise of what he described as “agri-preneurs” across Nigerian communities.
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He subsequently invited the Executive Secretary of the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria and heads of agencies to present their budget performance reports and 2026 proposals before the Committee.
The 2026 defence session is expected to shape legislative oversight on agricultural research, training and extension services as Nigeria intensifies efforts toward food security and economic diversification.
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