By Peter Omopo
The Niger State Government has offered 100,000 hectares of land to the Federal Government for a large-scale housing and agricultural settlement programme aimed at boosting food security, rural livelihoods and inclusive economic growth.
Governor Mohammed Bago disclosed this on Friday in Abuja during the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Niger State Government, the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI).
Speaking at the event, Bago said affordability and sustainability were central to the initiative, noting that the land contribution underscored the state’s commitment to the project. He described the agreement as a major step toward implementing President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda on mass housing, food security and inclusive development.
Under the arrangement, Niger State will serve as the pilot for what officials described as a new development model that integrates housing, farming, energy and rural infrastructure. The project, known as the Sustainable Integrated Productive Communities initiative, is designed to settle farmers in planned communities where homes, farmland, power supply and market access are provided together.
Governor Bago said the scheme would eliminate the long-standing challenge faced by farmers who must choose between where they live and how they earn a living. According to him, clustering farmers in structured estates would improve productivity, reduce post-harvest losses, enhance security and curb rural–urban migration.
He added that Niger State’s extensive agricultural mechanisation capacity would be deployed more efficiently on large, contiguous farmlands created under the project. The governor also outlined plans to develop farm estates along a proposed Abuja–Minna rail corridor, utilise water from the state’s hydropower dams for irrigation, and establish grazing reserves within the estates to address farmer–herder conflicts.
Bago said the state would issue certificates of occupancy for the land to the Federal Government within days to demonstrate its readiness for swift implementation.
Also speaking, the Minister of State for Finance, Dr Doris Uzoka-Anite, said the initiative reflected cooperative federalism and demonstrated how housing policy could be aligned with agriculture, food security and rural stability. She explained that the project was designed to deliver functional and affordable housing tailored to farmers and low- to middle-income earners, rather than luxury developments.
Uzoka-Anite added that renewable energy solutions, including solar-powered facilities, would be integrated to support agro-processing and storage, while the partnership would attract private investors, pension funds and agribusinesses interested in scaling the model.
The Managing Director of MOFI, Armstrong Takang, said the project was aimed at closing the gap between agriculture, housing and energy policies. He explained that the scheme would deliver fully serviced rural communities with roads, water, sanitation, schools and health facilities, reducing the need for migration to urban centres.
Takang disclosed that farmland would be allocated for specific crops with guaranteed off-takers secured through competitive processes. He added that Family Homes Funds would lead mass and social housing delivery, while the Rural Electrification Agency would provide reliable power.
According to him, each housing unit constructed under the scheme is expected to generate at least 12 full-time jobs, with thousands more created across farming, agro-processing and logistics.
Officials said implementation would now move from planning to delivery, with Niger State serving as a test case for a model the Federal Government plans to replicate nationwide to address housing deficits, rural poverty and food insecurity simultaneously.
