From Musa Muhammad Kutama, Calabar
The Cross River State Government says it is targeting the cultivation of about 1,000 hectares of soybean in the 2026 farming season as part of efforts to build a commercially driven agricultural economy.
This comes alongside fresh milestones recorded under its flagship Project Grow Initiative since its launch in November 2023.
Speaking in Calabar on Monday, the Commissioner for Agriculture and Irrigation Development, Hon. Johnson Andiambey Ebokpo, said the administration of Governor Bassey Edet Otu is deliberately transitioning agriculture from subsistence practice to a structured agribusiness model capable of generating jobs, attracting investment, boosting food security, and strengthening rural livelihoods.
Ebokpo described agriculture as a central pillar of the state’s economic transformation agenda, noting that Cross River’s favourable climate, fertile land, and active farming population have historically been constrained by weak market systems, poor access to financing, and fragmented value chains.
He said Project Grow was designed as a strategic intervention to address these gaps and reposition the agricultural sector for competitiveness.
According to him, the initiative seeks to build an integrated agricultural system that delivers value from production through processing, marketing, distribution, and export.
He stressed that government alone cannot achieve this without strong collaboration from the private sector, financial institutions, and development partners.
Reaffirming government’s commitment, Ebokpo said agriculture remains a top priority under Governor Otu’s development blueprint, urging stakeholders to sustain support for ongoing reforms aimed at transforming the sector into a sustainable wealth-creating engine.
Project Director, Mr. Denis Ikpali, described Project Grow as a Market Systems Development programme focused on addressing structural bottlenecks in agriculture, including access to markets, aggregation systems, input supply chains, financing, and guaranteed demand.
He explained that farmers are linked to structured buyers where quality standards, pricing arrangements, and demand forecasts are established before production begins, ensuring reduced market uncertainty.
Ikpali said the initiative now covers all 18 local government areas of the state, with strong implementation in key agricultural clusters such as Odukpani, Ogoja, Obubra, Yakurr, Yala, Ikom, Obudu, and Obanliku.
According to him, Project Grow focuses on both primary and secondary value chains. Primary crops include rice, maize, cassava, animal fodder, and aquaculture, while secondary value chains cover soybean, cowpea, wheat, sorghum, groundnut, and orange-fleshed sweet potato.
He added that over 5,300 farmers have benefited from training delivered in partnership with AFOS, a German-supported non-governmental organisation, covering Good Agricultural Practices, financial literacy, and modern farming techniques aimed at improving productivity and reducing post-harvest losses.
Ikpali further disclosed that about 450 hectares of maize and soybean farms were cultivated during the 2025 farming season under the programme.
He also revealed that, in collaboration with Flour Mills of Nigeria, the project conducted a Training-of-Trainers programme for 110 soybean farmers and extension agents to strengthen technical capacity and ensure compliance with market standards.
Beyond production, he said the initiative has supported the emergence of 28 agribusiness enterprises, strengthened cooperatives, and created 391 direct jobs across the agricultural value chain.
A key milestone, Ikpali said, is the offtake agreement signed with Flour Mills of Nigeria for the supply of 2,000 metric tonnes of soybean and 20,000 metric tonnes of maize, valued at about N18 billion.
He explained that the agreement provides a guaranteed market for farmers and agribusiness operators in the state, reinforcing the project’s market-driven approach and improving supply chain stability.
He added that Project Grow recently recorded another breakthrough with the delivery of an 11.4-metric-tonne test shipment of soybeans to Flour Mills in Ibadan, describing it as a major step toward Cross River’s integration into national structured agricultural supply networks.
On financing, Ikpali said the project has introduced a Cash Back Guarantee Scheme aimed at reducing risks for financial institutions and encouraging increased lending to the agricultural sector.
He noted that the mechanism is expected to unlock about N150 billion in agricultural financing over time.
So far, over N3 billion has been mobilised for agricultural investment, with an additional N1.5 billion projected to be accessed ahead of the 2026 farming cycle.
In partnership with the National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF), plans are also underway to support the cultivation of 2,000 hectares of rice through input financing.
Ikpali further stated that Project Grow is collaborating with ETG to improve input distribution, enhance productivity, and attract long-term investment into the agricultural ecosystem.
With the approval of Governor Otu, the state is also set to establish a Centre of Excellence for Agricultural Training and an Indigenous Community Seed Multiplication Centre, alongside a proposed urea plant to improve fertilizer availability and boost local production.
Looking ahead, he said the project targets the cultivation of about 1,000 hectares of soybean in the 2026 farming season across participating communities.
He acknowledged challenges such as inflation, high transport costs, limited access to structured finance, and price volatility, but said the programme is responding through stronger partnerships, data-driven planning, and adaptive implementation strategies.
The Project Grow team expressed appreciation to all stakeholders, including government agencies, development partners, financial institutions, farmers, and private sector actors, for their continued support in advancing Cross River’s agricultural transformation agenda.
