The Federal Government, in collaboration with the Niger State Government, has announced plans to provide interest-free loans of ₦300,000 each to 600 small-scale farmers in the state. The total potential disbursement is ₦180 million.
The scheme is being carried out through the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme, which operates under the National Social Investment Programme Agency. It is meant to boost agricultural productivity and support smallholder farmers.
The National Programme Manager of GEEP, Hamza Baba, disclosed this in Minna on Saturday at the start of the FarmerMoni enumeration exercise. The event also included the training of GEEP desk officers drawn from the state’s 25 local government areas.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that Baba explained the loans would enable farmers to buy agricultural inputs, expand production and improve their livelihoods.
Baba said each eligible farmer would receive ₦300,000, to be repaid within one year. Repayment is expected to begin six months after farming activities commence.
He explained that the intervention would cover farmers engaged in crop cultivation, poultry, livestock, fisheries and aquaculture.
The programme will also involve the identification, registration and verification of beneficiaries, to ensure that the funds reach active farmers.
Under the enumeration exercise, farmers will be required to provide digital photographs and biometric information.
They will also be required to supply their National Identification Numbers (NIN).
The farm locations and details of each farmer’s agricultural activities will also be verified.
Registration will be carried out through the designated GEEP desk officers.
Baba added that the agency would work with the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), the Agricultural Development Programme (ADP) and local government officials to monitor how the loans are used and repaid.
The Niger State Commissioner for Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management, Ibrahim Inga, described the initiative as part of efforts to complement existing poverty reduction programmes in the state.
He said the involvement of relevant stakeholders would strengthen transparency and ensure that only genuine farmers benefit from the intervention.
The Special Adviser to the Governor on Social Investment Programme, Hauwa Mohammed, said the desk officers had been equipped with tablets to capture farmers’ details and farmland locations.
She explained that the digital registration process would help prevent fictitious beneficiaries from accessing the loans.
The FarmerMoni initiative forms part of the Federal Government’s wider efforts to expand agricultural financing and improve small-scale producers’ access to credit.
In March 2026, Nairametrics reported that the Federal Government approved a ₦250 billion facility for the Bank of Agriculture to give smallholder farmers loans at single-digit interest rates.
In September, the Nigeria Commodity Exchange and the Bank of Agriculture launched a price guarantee scheme targeting 500,000 farmers in its first phase. The scheme is expected to expand to two million beneficiaries.
Earlier, the Federal Government and the Bank of Agriculture introduced an agricultural financing programme aimed at raising annual grain production from about 11 million tonnes to 25 million tonnes.
The Niger State intervention differs from these broader financing programmes in offering interest-free loans directly to a targeted group of 600 farmers.
