Mbah Flags Off Distribution Of Farm Inputs To 63,000 Enugu Farmers

Governor Peter Mbah has flagged off the distribution of fertilisers and other farm inputs to 63,000 registered smallholder farmers across Enugu State as part of efforts to boost food production and transform agriculture into a major driver of the state’s economy.

Speaking at the launch on Tuesday, Mbah said agriculture would account for 40 per cent of his administration’s target of growing Enugu into a $30 billion economy, stressing that the sector must move beyond subsistence farming to commercial production.

“We have done this in the last three years, essentially providing fertilisers, agrochemicals, stems, seeds and seedlings to improve our yields. Today, we have 63,000 bags of fertilisers. We also have to migrate our smallholder farmers from subsistence farming to mechanised farming,” the governor said.

He said the state was investing across the agricultural value chain, including mechanisation, agro-processing and export.

“We are looking at exports, playing in all the value chains, being able to process our produce, add value, package and then export. This is also why the airport concession and cargo terminal are important to us,” Mbah added.

The governor directed officials to ensure the free inputs reached genuine farmers through the state’s database and warned beneficiaries against selling them.

“The fertilisers have ‘Not for Sale’ boldly written on them. Make sure you use them to scale up production so that we can have a bumper harvest and drive down the cost of food in Enugu,” he said.

Commissioner for Agriculture and Agro-Industrialisation, Patrick Ubru, said the 2026 distribution represented a significant increase from previous years.

“Over 63,000 bags will be distributed this year, representing a 58 per cent increase from last year. Thousands of farmers across the 17 local government areas will receive free improved seeds, cassava stems, fertilisers and agrochemicals,” he said.

Ubru added that more than 84,000 farmers had been digitally profiled, over 25,000 trained in climate-smart agriculture, while the state had established a modern seed testing laboratory, a tractor assembly plant and was rehabilitating irrigation systems to support year-round farming.

The representative of the Farmers Association of Nigeria (FAN) in Enugu State, Emmanuel Chukwuemeka Eneh, commended the governor’s investment in agriculture and warned against diverting the farm inputs.

“Any farmer or anybody who colludes to sell any of the farm inputs should be ready to go to jail,” he said