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Nigeria Becoming Fertiliser Powerhouse In Africa, Buhari Boasts
President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, in Abuja, attributed Nigeria’s rising prominence as Africa’s fertiliser powerhouse to the implementation of the right policies by the present administration.
According to a statement by Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, Buhari at an audience with the Executive Committee of Fertiliser Producers and Suppliers’ Association of Nigeria (FEPSAN) said: “With our over 70 blending plants operating, Nigeria is on its way to becoming Africa’s fertiliser powerhouse. And with our mega Urea production facilities, Nigeria is definitely a global player in the urea space.”
The president noted that this remarkable achievement, in a very short period of time, had ensured a steady flow of investments to the sector from the private sector; bringing prosperity to millions of Nigerians and good returns to the investors.
He expressed delight that the era of a persistent shortage of fertiliser in the country was now a thing of the past, commending FEPSAN for partnering with the government in the very patriotic backward integration project of enhancing the agricultural value chain.
He recounted steps taken by his administration to limit over-reliance on imports, ensure the availability of the commodity and achieve self-sufficiency in food production in the country.
“When this administration came to office in 2015, our focus was on three key areas; security, economy and tackling corruption,” he stated.
“For every nation to have peace and prosperity, its economy must be inclusive.
“For Nigeria, a predominantly agrarian nation, having an inclusive economy meant we needed to prioritise the enhancement of our agricultural value chain.
“We quickly identified the persistent shortage of fertilizer as a key reason for the low yields experienced on our farms.
“This historical scarcity of fertiliser was due to our over-reliance on imports and the inefficient participation of the Government in distributing this essential commodity to the farmers.
“As a government, it was very clear to us that these practices needed to change. Nigeria is naturally blessed with most of the raw materials needed to produce fertilisers.
“Nigeria has all the skills and manpower required to convert these raw materials to fertilisers. With the right enabling environment, Nigeria has entrepreneurs who are ready to invest in the sector.
“So, we went to work. And as the chairman of FEPSAN mentioned in his remarks, the rest is now history,” he said.
The president noted that a key indicator of the present government’s successful policies is the fact that the country had no shortages of fertilisers during the global COVID lockdowns.
“Today, I am pleased to hear your assurances that we will not have any shortages in Nigeria because of the Eastern European conflicts that have impacted the global fertiliser trade. All these trends indicate our backward integration policy was the right policy.”
Appreciating those who have invested and continue to invest in the sector, the president said: “Through these investments, you are double blessed as you are making profits and bringing prosperity to millions of Nigerians working in the agricultural value chain.”
In his remarks, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele, said fertiliser remains a key input to achieving food security and in the realisation of this, the apex bank has continued to place great importance on its availability and accessibility by farmers to improve yield, productivity and ultimately, output.
Highlighting some CBN’s interventions, including the Real Sector Support Facility, Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme, National Food Security Programme and the Presidential Fertiliser Initiative (PFI), Emefiele said a total of over N114.09billion has been disbursed to support the fertiliser industry in the last five years.
He explained that the interventions were long-term loans at concessionary interest rates to support domestic blending and distribution across the country.
Given the massive funding support received by FEPSAN members from the CBN, Emefiele announced that the bank is working with majors in the industry, such as Dangote and Indorama, to ensure that they sell Urea at discounted prices to the blending plants to ensure that the prices of fertiliser are moderated in the market.
“The bank will equally work with the blending plants to ensure that the blended fertilisers are made available to end-user farmers at affordable prices,” he said.
On the CBN Anchor Borrowers’ Programme, the CBN governor said the bank has disbursed N941.26billion to 4.2million smallholder farmers cultivating 21 agricultural commodities on 5.4million hectares of land across the country.
He added that for the 2021 wet season programme, the CBN disbursed N193.59billion to 923,699 farmers cultivating seven commodities on 1.16million hectares of land.
According to Emefiele, the CBN currently has a balance of stock of fertiliser from the last planting season under the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme to the tune of 1.95million bags and has committed additional 2.6million bags for use during the 2022 programme.
Also speaking, FEPSAN President, Thomas Etuh thanked Buhari for commissioning two facilities by members of the association – Barbedos blending plant in Kaduna and the Dangote Urea plant in Lagos – within two months.
“Mr President, FEPSAN’s success is not only evident by the number of factories we commission, but also by the many pyramids of rice, maize and other crops you have been inspecting across the country.
“Mr President, before you created the PFI Initiative in 2016, Nigeria’s fertiliser production base was almost zero. We had less than seven companies producing at 10 per cent of their installed capacity. Nigeria’s Urea output was reported at less than 300,000 tons,” he said.
Citing recent data from a fertiliser working group that reviews and validates consumption data spanning over 12 years, Etuh said Nigeria recorded its highest consumption of fertilisers at 1.8million tons per annum in 2021.
He assured Nigerians that the association is ready, willing and available to ensure that fertilisers are available in all parts of the country for the 2022 wet season.
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) yesterday arrested over 100 suspects at Proxy Night club located at No. 7, Akin Adesola Street, Victoria Island, where a drug party was going on.
Spokesman of the Agency, Femi Babafemi, who disclosed this yesterday, said the suspects arrested include the owner of the club, Mike EzeNwalieNwogu, alias Pretty Mike, who was taken into custody for screening.
“Cartons of illicit substances, including Loud and laughing gas, were recovered from suspects at the party and the club’s store,” Babafemi said.
The raid followed intelligence about the drug party. NDLEA operatives who were embedded in the party between 11 pm on Saturday, 25th October, however, disrupted the gathering at 3 am on Sunday, 26th October, in line with Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
Similarly, NDLEA said a total of 70 parcels of cocaine factory packed in walls of cocoa butter formula body cream containers heading to London, United Kingdom, were uncovered at the export shed of the MurtalaMuhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, with three suspects arrested in a series of follow-up operations across Lagos.
According to the statement, “The cocaine consignments weighing 3.60 kilograms were discovered on 14th October 2025 during examination of cargoes packaged as personal effects going to London, UK on an Air Peace flight.
“A cargo agent, Lawal Mustapha Olakunle, who presented the consignment for airfreight, was promptly arrested while investigations stretching into two weeks led to the arrest of two principal suspects linked to the attempt to export the concealed Class A drug to the UK.
“In a follow up operation on 18th October, a female healthcare worker OgunmuyideTaiwo Deborah was arrested following which Mutiu Adebayo Adebiyi, the Chief Executive Officer of a travel agency, MutiuAdebiyi& Co, was arrested at his 23 LadokeAkintola Street, Ikeja GRA Lagos office on Monday 20 th October”.
In a similar development, an attempt by a 35-year-old Lesotho national, Lemena Mark, to export 103.59 grams of methamphetamine concealed in a diabeta herbs coffee tea pack to the Philippines on an Ethiopian Airlines flight from the AkanuIbiam International Airport (AIIA) Enugu on Wednesday, 22nd October, was thwarted by NDLEA officers who arrested him and recovered the illicit drug.
No fewer than 21,950 capsules of tramadol 250mg concealed inside a 100-litre water heater were recovered from a suspect, Umar Abubakar, 40, who was arrested by NDLEA operatives at Bode Saadu, Morro local government area of Kwara state, following credible intelligence on Tuesday, 21st October.
In Taraba, the duo of Auwal Musa, 26, and SalihuBala, 22, were arrested on Tuesday, 21st October, with 450,000 pills of tramadol and Exol-5 at Dan-anacha checkpoint while conveying the consignment in a truck loaded with building materials from Onitsha, Anambra state, to Mubi, Adamawa state.
Also, NDLEA officers on patrol along the Okene/Lokoja highway, Kogi state, seized 162.200kg skunk, a strain of cannabis, from a truck on Friday, 24th October. Operatives in Nasarawa state on Wednesday, 22nd October, recovered 128kg of the same psychoactive substance from a suspect, Abubakar Muhammad, 55, in the Keffi area of the state.
A mother of two, Oyonumoh Glory Effiong, who is a major distributor of Canadian and California Loud, both strong strains of cannabis, in Lekki, Ajah, Ikoyi, Victoria Island and VGC areas of Lagos, has been arrested by NDLEA operatives on Friday, 17th October, during a raid at her Lekki home, where 500 grams of the illicit substances were recovered.
In the Ikorodu area of Lagos, NDLEA officers on Thursday, 23rd October, raided the home of a suspect, OgunyaboAdenigbigbe, at Solomade estate, where 275 litres of skuchies, a new psychoactive substance produced with black currant drink, cannabis and opioids, were recovered.
A 75-year-old grandpa, EchenduOnuoka, was arrested on Wednesday, 22nd October, at Ovum village, Obingwa LGA, Abia state, with 4.7kg skunk seized from him, while a 60-year-old grandma, Aukana John, was nabbed with 225 grams of the same substance at Apanta village, in the same LGA.
While a 150kg skunk was recovered during a raid operation at Lot camp, IkunAkoko, Ondo state, two suspects: Bashir Mohammad, 50, and Samini Ahmed Tijjani, 35, were nabbed with 234.5kg of the same substance at Yan aya ,Saminaka in Lere LGA, Kaduna on Friday, 24th October, just as another set of suspects: IsahUsman, 50, and Salvation Okoler, 18, were arrested with 8,600 pills of tramadol 225mg and rohypnol along Abuja/Kaduna highway.
At the Seme border area of Lagos, NDLEA operatives on Wednesday, 22nd October nabbed Jacob Ojugbele with 55kg skunk at Ashipa area of Badagry, while AmusaOluwabukola was arrested with 121.3 litres of skuchies at ItogaBadagry.
In Zamfara state, NDLEA operatives on patrol along Gummi-Anka road on Monday, 20th October arrested a suspect, Abubakar Ibrahim, 30, in possession of an AK-47 rifle and 1,746 assorted calibres of ammunition, for AK-47 and GPMG rifles while moving them from Sokoto to Bagega forest, Anka LGA, Zamfara. Both the suspect and the exhibits have since been handed over to the appropriate security agency for further investigation.
With the same vigour, Commands and formations of the Agency across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitization activities in schools, worship centres, workplaces, and communities, among others, in the past week.
These include: WADA sensitization lecture to students and staff of Asabari Grammar School, IluwaIsaleOke, Saki West LGA, Oyo; Government Day Girls Secondary School, BirninKebbi, Kebbi; St. Mark’s College, Nsude, Enugu; Kusaki Secondary School, Gboko North, Benue; Government Day Secondary School, Serti- Baruwa, Gashaka LGA, Taraba; Police Children School 2, Port Harcourt, Rivers and Hajara Ahmad International School, Tudun Wada, Kano state, among others.
While commending the officers and men of MMIA, AIIA, Lagos, Kwara, Abia, Nasarawa, Kogi, Ondo, Anambra, Taraba, Kaduna, Seme and Zamfara Commands for the arrests and seizures, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed BubaMarwa (Rtd) urged them and their colleagues across the country to continue the Agency’s balanced approach to drug control efforts.
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), BayoOjulari, to provide a detailed account of oil revenues reportedly flagged by the Auditor-General of the Federation in the 2022 annual report.
The report, published on September 9, 2025, raised questions over the management of multi-billion-naira transactions, including over N22 billion, $49 million, £14 million, and €5 million in oil-related revenue, handled by the national oil company.
In a letter dated October 25, 2025, and signed by SERAP’s Deputy Director, KolawoleOluwadare, the organisation called on Ojulari to ensure transparency by identifying those responsible for any unaccounted funds and forwarding the findings to the appropriate anti-corruption agencies.
“These findings raise serious concerns about transparency and accountability in the management of public resources,” SERAP said.
The group urged the NNPCL to recover any unremitted or misapplied funds and return them to the national treasury, stressing that proper management of oil revenues was crucial for national development.
“The allegations, if not promptly and transparently addressed, could undermine public confidence and economic stability,” SERAP stated.
According to the organisation, the Auditor-General’s report drew attention to issues such as irregular payments, uncompleted projects, and documentation lapses relating to oil sector transactions.
SERAP argued that corruption and financial mismanagement in the oil sector had long hindered Nigeria’s ability to channel its vast petroleum wealth into improved public services.
“Despite the country’s enormous oil resources, citizens continue to face hardship due to a lack of accountability and transparency in revenue management,” the statement noted.
The organisation maintained that if the flagged funds were properly accounted for, more resources could be made available for sectors such as education, healthcare, and social welfare.
It added that the NNPCL must take proactive steps to comply with audit recommendations, including closing identified loopholes and enhancing oversight on contract execution.
SERAP also warned that it would take legal action should the NNPCL fail to respond within seven days.
“We would be grateful if the recommended measures are taken within seven days of the receipt and publication of this letter.
“If we have not heard from you by then, SERAP shall consider appropriate legal actions to compel compliance in the public interest,” the organisation said.
The group cited Section 15(5) of the Nigerian Constitution, which mandates public institutions to prevent corrupt practices and abuse of power.
The Joint Committee of the Senate and House of Representatives on Constitution Review has approved the creation of an additional state in the South-East geo-political zone.
According to a statement by the media unit of the committee, the resolution was reached on Saturday at a two-day retreat in Lagos, where it reviewed 55 proposals for state creation across the country.
The session, chaired by the Deputy Senate President, BarauJibrin, and co-chaired by the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, resolved that, in the spirit of fairness and equity, the Federal Government should create another state for the region.
Kalu, who joined other lawmakers to champion additional state creation for the region, argued that a new state would give the people a sense of belonging.
When created, the South-East will be at par with the South-South, South-West, North-Central, and North-East zones, each having six states.
The South-East is the only geo-political zone with five states comprising Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu, and Imo.
The North-West comprises seven states: Kaduna, Kano, Kebbi, Katsina, Zamfara, Sokoto, and Jigawa.
According to the statement, Senator Abdul Ningi (Bauchi Central) moved a motion for the creation of the new state, which was seconded by Ibrahim Isiaka (Ifo/Ewekoro, Ogun State) at the retreat.
“The motion received the unanimous support of committee members and was adopted,” the statement read in part.
Similarly, the committee also established a sub-committee to consider the creation of additional states and local government areas across all six geo-political zones, noting that a total of 278 proposals were submitted for review.
Speaking at the event, Jibrin urged members to rally support among their colleagues at the National Assembly and state Houses of Assembly to ensure the resolutions sail through during voting.
“We need to strengthen what we have started so that all parts of the country will key into this process.
“By the time we get to the actual voting, we should already have the buy-in of all stakeholders—from both chambers and the state Houses of Assembly,” the Deputy Senate President was quoted as saying.