Executive Summary
Nigeria faces a looming crisis as its farming population ages, with the average farmer now in their late forties to early fifties, threatening the nation's food security. This "grey exodus," as it's called, is more dangerous than the outward migration of young professionals (Japa) because the loss of agricultural skills and knowledge is harder to reverse. Agriculture employs a significant portion of Nigeria's labor force and contributes substantially to the GDP, but productivity remains low due to minimal mechanization and low fertilizer use. Dr. Hani Okoroafor highlights that this demographic shift is already contributing to food inflation, pushing millions into food insecurity, and the current system is not attracting young people to farming. To address this, Nigeria needs to shift its thinking towards agriculture as a high-performance economic system, focusing on increasing productivity, rebuilding value chains, redesigning financing, and addressing land access for young Nigerians.
- Nigeria's aging farming population poses a significant threat to food security and economic stability, requiring immediate policy intervention.
What Is Driving The Story?
- Aging farming population
- Lack of youth engagement
- Low agricultural productivity