The call was made in Abuja on Wednesday during the presentation of the organisation's assessment and community scorecard report titled, "Beyond the Official Narratives: ActionAid Nigeria Community Scorecard Report on the NAGS-AP Wheat Dry Season Farming Programme in Nigeria."
According to ActionAid Nigeria, while the wheat intervention programme was introduced to boost local production and reduce the country's dependence on imports, several operational and structural challenges are limiting its impact on farmers and national food security goals.
Speaking at the briefing, the Deputy Country Director of ActionAid Nigeria, Suwaiba Muhammad-Dankabo, explained that the report assessed the implementation of the wheat component of the Agro-Pocket intervention under the 2023/24 and 2024/25 dry season farming cycles.
She noted that the independent assessment drew insights from a wide range of stakeholders, including smallholder farmers, women and youth groups, wheat farmers' associations, agro-dealers, Agricultural Development Programmes (ADPs), and government officials involved in the scheme across six states.
Muhammad-Dankabo highlighted the urgency of strengthening local wheat production, noting that Nigeria currently imports nearly 90 per cent of its wheat needs, placing significant pressure on the country's foreign exchange reserves.
She explained that the NAGS-AP wheat intervention, funded by the African Development Bank with approximately $134 million, was designed to increase dry-season wheat cultivation, provide subsidised agricultural inputs to farmers, and ultimately improve domestic food production.
"The assessment sought to determine whether the intervention is achieving its intended objectives and whether the targeted beneficiaries, particularly women, youth, and persons with disabilities, are receiving the expected benefits," she said.
While acknowledging the Federal Government's efforts to tackle wheat import dependency, ActionAid's findings suggest that the programme is yet to fully deliver on its promises.
Presenting the report's key conclusions, Muhammad-Dankabo identified delayed distribution of farming inputs, inadequate productivity gains, financial difficulties confronting smallholder farmers, and weak institutional coordination as major factors undermining the effectiveness of the intervention.
The report further revealed that achieving sustainable growth in wheat production would require deeper investments in irrigation infrastructure, stronger agricultural institutions, improved seed systems, and more effective agricultural extension services.
To address these challenges, ActionAid recommended the development of a comprehensive national wheat seed multiplication strategy aimed at ensuring the availability of quality seeds for farmers. The organisation also called for the establishment of a zonal wheat suitability framework to guide cultivation efforts in areas with the highest production potential.
In addition, the group advocated for gender-responsive agricultural financing mechanisms that would improve access to credit and support for women, youth, and other vulnerable farming groups.
The organisation urged the NAGS-AP Project Secretariat to strengthen programme accountability by ensuring that seed distribution is completed before the end of October each year, improving access to redemption centres, publishing verified beneficiary lists at ward level, and deploying real-time public dashboards to monitor implementation progress.
ActionAid also called for improvements in information and communications technology infrastructure to enhance transparency during redemption exercises. It further recommended investigations into allegations of input diversion and the supply of adulterated fertilisers, agrochemicals, and uncertified seeds.
The organisation stressed that agro-dealers found guilty of malpractice should face appropriate sanctions to protect the integrity of the programme and safeguard farmers from exploitation.
At the state level, ActionAid recommended the recruitment and training of additional agricultural extension workers, particularly women, while also advocating greater support for Agricultural Development Programme offices to enable them provide continuous technical assistance to farmers beyond input distribution.
Farmers and farmer associations were equally encouraged to maximise the use of inputs received under the intervention and improve their digital literacy to better participate in technology-driven agricultural initiatives.
For development partners and funding institutions, including the African Development Bank, the organisation called for stronger transparency measures, enhanced disclosure requirements, support for anti-corruption mechanisms, and increased participation of civil society organisations in programme monitoring and evaluation.
Muhammad-Dankabo reiterated ActionAid Nigeria's commitment to promoting accountability in public agricultural programmes and amplifying the voices of smallholder farmers, especially women who remain central to the country's food production system.
She urged the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, the NAGS-AP Secretariat, the African Development Bank, and other stakeholders to carefully review the report's findings and implement its recommendations to improve programme outcomes.
"The wheat farmers of Nigeria deserve a programme that delivers results, promotes transparency and ensures accountability," she said. "The time to act on these findings is now."