Abubakar Kyari, Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, and Mohammed Ibrahim, Executive Secretary of the National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF), have jointly called for a fundamental shift in how Africa finances agricultural research, insisting that sustainable agricultural transformation requires more than increased funding.

The call was made during the High-Level Ministerial Dialogue on Sustainable Financing for Agricultural Research, Development and Innovation (AR4D), held as part of the 9th Africa Agriculture Science Week (AASW9) at the Abuja Continental Hotel.

The dialogue, jointly organised by the National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF) and the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA), focused on the theme, ‘Financing Africa’s Agricultural Future: Mobilizing Strategic Investments for Science, Innovation and Transformation’.

Mohammed Ibrahim, Executive Secretary of the National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF) who addressed policymakers, researchers, development partners and private sector stakeholders, during a panel session, argued that while funding remains important, the continent’s biggest challenge lies in creating an innovation ecosystem that connects research with industry and market demand.

He explained that an effective agricultural innovation system must rest on three interconnected pillars including: government institutions that provide policy and funding, research institutions that generate knowledge, and industries that transform research into marketable solutions.

“Financing is not the major challenge. It’s actually an ecosystem challenge,” he said, stressing that agricultural research should go beyond academic publications to produce innovations capable of attracting investment, commercialization and large-scale adoption,” he said.

Ibrahim emphasized that research financing must follow innovations that demonstrate economic value. He questioned whether many research projects across Africa are sufficiently demand-driven and aligned with market realities.

“As much as research requires funding, the market also requires research. Financing flows wherever there are returns,” he noted.

Ibrahim also outlined NADF’s funding structure, explaining that the agency receives statutory budgetary allocations, strategic funding from designated levies and natural resource development contributions, while also being empowered to raise capital through investments and philanthropy.

He said the Fund deploys its resources through three major asset classes, debt financing, grants and equity investments, with lending channelled through participating financial institutions.

In his remarks, Abubakar Kyari, Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, said the establishment of NADF represents a strategic intervention designed to reverse decades of underinvestment in Nigeria’s agricultural research system and improve the livelihoods of millions of rural farmers.

Reflecting on his time in the National Assembly when the NADF Bill was considered, the minister said he strongly supported its creation after witnessing the impact of dedicated intervention agencies in other sectors.

Despite agriculture contributing roughly one-quarter of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product, Kyari lamented that rural communities, where most food is produced, have seen little improvement over several decades.

“Eighty-five percent of the food we consume comes from smallholder farmers, yet their living conditions have remained virtually unchanged. That shows there is a structural imbalance in the agricultural economy,” he said.

The minister attributed declining farm productivity to poor access to quality seeds, inadequate financing, shrinking arable land, climate pressures and prolonged neglect of agricultural research institutions.

He disclosed that many farmers now resort to planting harvested grains as seeds because they cannot afford certified planting materials, resulting in lower yields and declining productivity.

Kyari commended NADF for conducting a comprehensive baseline assessment of Nigeria’s 16 agricultural research institutes and 17 colleges of agriculture, describing the exercise as a critical step toward revitalising the country’s research infrastructure.

The ministerial dialogue formed part of broader efforts to develop sustainable financing models for Agricultural Research, Development and Innovation (AR4D) across Africa.

The meeting culminated in the adoption of the Abuja Clarion Call, through which more than 500 African leaders urged governments to increase predictable domestic investment in agricultural research, establish sustainable agricultural development funds, strengthen public-private partnerships, expand innovative blended-finance mechanisms, and deepen continental collaboration to accelerate technology commercialization, food security, climate resilience and economic transformation across Africa.