Tinubu’s Tech & Food Security Push: What Nigerians Should Expect 

Nigeria’s economic plan now runs on two engines: build a bigger tech workforce and fix food security at scale. 

The Presidency is pursuing this through international partnerships,most visibly with Brazil, major agro-processing investments, and mass digital-skills training, while using short, targeted price-relief tools when markets overheat. 

Here’s what’s promised, the money attached, and the milestones to watch through 2027.

The core playbook

Abuja’s message is straightforward: use technology to create jobs and raise productivity, and ramp up food production from subsistence to mechanised scale. The growing Brazil corridor, spanning aviation, industry, and agribusiness, sets the diplomatic and logistics backdrop for execution.

The big partnerships (and cash to track)

The Brazil–Nigeria agreement announced in June 2025 earmarks about $1 billion for agriculture and food security, with spillovers to energy and defence. Nigerians should expect tenders for mechanised equipment, training programmes, and service centres.

The real test is how quickly funds move into state-level projects and how soon tractors, implements, and service hubs show up in communities.

The African Development Bank is mobilising roughly $2.2 billion to expand Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones to 28 states. These hubs aim to cut post-harvest losses, deepen value chains, and create local jobs. Watch which states reach commissioning, how many SMEs set up inside the parks, and whether farm-to-market times actually shrink.

Aviation and logistics ties with Brazil aim to streamline operations: a direct Lagos–São Paulo flight and an Embraer maintenance facility in Lagos are expected to expedite the movement of parts, cargo, and personnel. If schedules stick, agriculture kit, technicians, and investors can cycle through more efficiently.

Short-term price relief vs. long-term production

In July 2024, the government opened a 150-day duty-free import window for wheat, maize, rice, and beans to cool food inflation, with waivers running through December 31, 2024. A similar “pressure valve” may be used again if prices flare, but imports are not a lasting fix.

From 2025 to 2027, policy is tilting back to yields. Programmes such as NAGS-AP are being used to upgrade input delivery and mechanisation while AfDB-backed processing zones come online.

The early markers to watch are hectares planted, verified fertiliser and seed deliveries per LGA, irrigation projects commissioned, and the gap between farm-gate and retail prices for staples like rice and maize.

Urgency remains high. Climate-driven water stress and erratic rainfall are dragging yields, and around 31 million people face acute food insecurity nationwide. Any plan that doesn’t fix irrigation, inputs, storage, and logistics will not endure.

The technology track: skills, jobs, and industry capacity

The 3MTT (3 Million Technical Talent) programme trained about 30,000 fellows in its first phase from December 2023 to March 2024, and scaled to roughly 270,000 in phase two on the path to 3 million by 2027. Use it as a barometer: cohort sizes, completion rates, and job placement into support, cloud, data, and cybersecurity roles will show whether skills are translating into work.

The 3MTT–Microsoft alliance is being expanded to strengthen delivery and employer pipelines. The key proof points are credential tracks tied to real vacancies, internships that lead to paid roles, and state-by-state employer participation.

The government also set a mid-term goal of 70% digital literacy by 2027 under the National Digital Literacy Framework. Expect state-level drives, community hubs, and device-access schemes, but judge success by actual uptake and measurable skills, not announcements.

What households and businesses should expect

Through 2025, Nigerians should anticipate occasional import waivers or FX support when food prices spike, seasonal roll-outs of inputs for wet and dry farming, and more 3MTT cohorts opening for applications and testing across the states. Businesses can plan for new training partnerships and entry-level tech talent coming to market.

From 2026 to 2027, more agro-processing zones are expected to become operational, bringing cheaper processing, better storage, and firmer off-take opportunities nearer to farms. Mechanisation centres and service hubs tied to the Brazil pact should begin leasing equipment and providing on-site maintenance.

In parallel, employer MOUs and paid internships should absorb growing numbers of trained fellows into tech roles.