By Daniel Oluwatobiloba Popoola
Benue State, long celebrated as Nigeria’s “Food Basket of the Nation,” is grappling with a deepening agricultural crisis as insecurity, herder attacks and land-use conflicts continue to drive farmers from their fields and cripple food production.
This was disclosed on Friday, 31 July, 2026 at the unveiling of a Strategic Food Security Plan in the state, themed “Enhancing Food Security and Peacebuilding in Nigeria through Strategic Planning Project,” where government officials and stakeholders, including farmers and academics, gathered to chart a path toward stabilising the state’s troubled food economy.
Presenting the plan, Dr Akange Edward painted a grim picture of a state whose agricultural fortunes had been steadily eroded by violence and displacement, despite its natural advantages.
“Benue State is celebrated as the Food Basket of the Nation. With fertile land, abundant water resources and a resilient farming population, it has historically anchored Nigeria’s food economy,” he said.
He added, “Yet today, Benue stands at a crossroads. Insecurity, displacement, land-use conflict, climate pressures and collapsing infrastructure have converged to weaken agricultural stability and rural livelihoods.”
Edward expressed concern over recurring attacks on farmers by armed bandits, warning that the state’s challenge extended beyond agricultural underperformance to structural weaknesses at the intersection of food systems and conflict dynamics.
According to him, the Strategic Food Security Plan was designed to stabilise the production environment, clarify land governance, rebuild inclusive rural economies and strengthen logistics and market reliability.
Speaking in the same vein, the state Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Security, Dr Benjamin Ashaver, represented by the Technical Adviser to the Governor on Agriculture, Danjuma Adejo, lamented that insecurity had adversely affected farming activities, noting that attacks by armed herders had displaced farmers and led to the loss of harvests.
“Benue State’s agricultural fortunes have, in recent years, been tested by forces beyond the ordinary challenges of farming. Insecurity has driven farmers from their farmlands. Displacement has fractured our community of planting and harvest seasons. Land-use conflicts between herders and farming communities have destroyed the trust that once held rural communities together,” he said.
To reverse the trend, Ashaver disclosed that the state had endorsed the plan and adopted a five-year development framework, urging Ministries, Departments and Agencies to take ownership of it.
He called on local government councils, traditional institutions and farmers to implement the programme within their communities and sustain the partnership behind its development.
He reaffirmed Governor Hyacinth Alia’s commitment to the strategy, including a mid-term review in 2028 and an end-term evaluation in 2031, and commended the Policy Team of the Supply Chain, Research and Innovation Hub, led by Ajibola Oladipo and Dr Shalem Shiekuma, for its work on the project.
