The National Agricultural Land Development Authority has announced its plan to unveil the Afritropic Greenhouse Farms by December, aiming to ensure the year-round availability of fresh, hygienic vegetables for residents of the Federal Capital Territory and neighboring states.

The Executive Secretary of NALDA, Mr. Olusegun Adebayo, revealed this during an inspection of the construction site on Wednesday in Abuja, which includes 20 units of greenhouse farms.

Adebayo confirmed the impressive production capacity of the new facility, stating that each greenhouse unit is designed to produce between two and three tonnes of vegetables, including crops like pepper, tomato, and various other horticultural products.

The integrated farm facilities are comprehensive, encompassing a packing house, a humid cooling system, solar-powered boreholes, cold storage, overhead stanchions, drip irrigation systems, and necessary security infrastructure.

The Executive Secretary explained that the core motivation behind the initiative is to strategically decentralize vegetable production, which will, in turn, reduce both transportation costs and post-harvest losses, effectively addressing challenges commonly associated with horticulture.

Adebayo underscored the expected impact of the technology, stating: “The idea behind the greenhouse farms is to improve access to all-year-round hygienic vegetables for residents of the FCT and neighbouring states.”

He further emphasized the solution the project offers for recurring shortages, asserting: “With this technology, tomato and pepper scarcity during the lean season will be a thing of the past.”

Beyond the FCT, Adebayo disclosed that similar greenhouse farms are actively under construction along the Lagos–Epe–Sagamu Expressway to serve the massive markets in Lagos and Ogun States.

Additionally, NALDA is conducting land clearing for open-field vegetable cultivation across 20 selected locations nationwide. In these areas, approximately 10 hectares are planned to be cleared in each federal constituency and allocated to women farmers.

These selected locations are spread across states including Cross River, Taraba, Gombe, Kwara, Katsina, Plateau, and Oyo, and each location will be fully equipped with essential infrastructure such as cold storage, a packing house, and irrigation facilities.