Nigeria has lost more than N1.3 billion to the outbreak of Tuta absoluta, commonly known as the “tomato leaf miner” or “Tomato Ebola” in three states.
Meanwhile, it has signed a $158.15 million financing agreement for the Value Chain Programme in Northern Nigeria (VCN) as part of efforts to revolutionise the nation’s agriculture sector.

The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, disclosed the loss at the ongoing four-day capacity-building workshop for financial institutions in Abuja, yesterday.

The workshop is organised by HortiNigeria in collaboration with the Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL Plc).
Kyari said the outbreak consequently led to the surge of a 50-kilogramme basket of tomatoes from N5,000 to N10,000 and approximately N30,000, thereby exacerbating food inflation and straining household budgets.

According to him, the affected states include Kano, Katsina and Kaduna. He explained that Tomato Ebola underscored the fragility of the country’s horticultural systems, adding that the invasive pest could decimate tomato crops within 48 hours, leading to catastrophic yield.

According to him, this crisis highlights the urgent need for integrated pest management strategies, investment in resilient crop varieties and enhanced support for farmers to safeguard the country’s food supply chains.

WITH the signing of the agreement, the implementation of the VCN project begins immediately to support agriculture development and value addition for farmers in nine states of the North. 

The initiative is co-funded by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), French Development Agency (AFD), and the Federal Government. The eight-year initiative, validated on March 21, 2024, was conceived following Vice President Kashim Shettima’s request during United Nations Food Systems Summit (UNFSS) stocktaking in Rome on July 24, 2023, that IFAD should scale up its portfolio in Nigeria and mobilise additional partners and donors to support the agri-food transformation and food security of the Renewed Hope Agenda.

It is expected to sustainably reduce poverty, enhance nutrition and improve better resilience of rural and most vulnerable populations in the nine northern states, including Borno, Bauchi, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Jigawa, Sokoto, Yobe and Zamfara.

Speaking during the signing ceremony of the financing agreement for the VCN project at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, Shettima described the initiative as a product of critical thinking about the economic reality of the northern region.

According to him, it is a fulfilment of the promise made by the administration of President Bola Tinubu to reduce poverty in Nigeria, restore dignity to the nation’s farmers, and ensure food security