Timi Oke, Chief Executive Officer of AgroEknor, delivered an urgent call for transformative reforms and targeted investments to avert a looming food security catastrophe in Nigeria.

Speaking at the recently concluded GTR West Africa 2025 conference, Oke warned that without immediate and coordinated action, Nigeria risks facing a deepening crisis with widespread economic and social consequences.

The GTR West Africa conference, a premier platform for trade, investment, and infrastructure dialogue in the region, provided a critical backdrop for conversations around agricultural resilience. Amidst sessions covering trade finance, regional integration, and economic diversification, Oke’s remarks stood out calling attention to the fundamental importance of agriculture as the bedrock of Nigeria’s recovery and long-term stability.

Structural Challenges Threatening Nigeria’s Food Future

In a compelling session attended by policymakers, investors, agribusiness leaders, and development partners, Oke laid bare the interconnected factors undermining Nigeria’s food security.

He pointed first to rising inflation, which has sharply increased the cost of basic food items, placing enormous pressure on household incomes and driving millions deeper into poverty. Oke highlighted that inflation not only affects consumers but also farmers, who face skyrocketing costs for seeds, fertilizers, and transportation, thereby squeezing already thin margins.

Climate change, he noted, further compounds the challenge. Increasingly erratic rainfall patterns, droughts, and flooding events are disrupting traditional farming cycles and threatening yields. Nigeria, with its heavy reliance on rain-fed agriculture, remains acutely vulnerable to these shifts.

Moreover, chronic underinvestment in agricultural infrastructure, including rural roads, irrigation systems, storage facilities, and market linkages continues to stifle productivity and profitability across the sector.

“Without functional infrastructure, our farmers cannot compete, cannot scale, and cannot survive the shocks of a changing climate,” Oke warned. “Agriculture must move from subsistence to sustainability, and that requires real investment.”

He argued that these structural barriers are not isolated issues but interconnected problems that demand an equally interconnected response.

A Multi-Pronged Strategy: Reform, Collaboration, Investment

Central to Oke’s address was his advocacy for a multi-pronged approach to reversing Nigeria’s food insecurity trajectory.

He emphasized three critical pillars:

Policy Reform: Oke called on government leaders to prioritize agriculture within the national development agenda. This means crafting policies that de-risk agricultural investment, streamline land tenure systems, offer incentives for innovation, and build safety nets for smallholder farmers. Regulatory efficiency, he stressed, would create a more attractive environment for private-sector participation and unlock the full potential of Nigeria’s agricultural assets.

Public-Private Collaboration: Recognizing the limitations of state-led initiatives alone, Oke pushed for deeper collaboration between government bodies, private investors, development finance institutions, and grassroots organizations. “We need dynamic partnerships that blend the strengths of each sector, i.e.  the policy power of the public sector, the innovation drive of the private sector, and the local knowledge of communities,” he said.

Impact Investing at Scale:  Oke singled out impact investing as a game-changing tool for transforming Nigeria’s agricultural landscape. Unlike traditional investment models, impact investing seeks measurable social and environmental returns alongside financial profits. He pointed to funds like Aruwa Capital Management as examples of how targeted capital can empower agribusinesses to not only thrive financially but also drive community-level transformation.

“Capital with a conscience, that’s what Nigeria needs more of,” Oke asserted. “The agriculture of the future is not only about yields; it is about equity, resilience, and sustainability.”

He urged the financial sector to embrace blended finance models that share risk and reward while building resilient food systems capable of withstanding economic and climatic shocks.

The End of Isolated Solutions

Throughout his session, Oke maintained a clear message: the era of isolated, fragmented interventions is over. Nigeria can no longer afford piecemeal solutions that treat symptoms without addressing root causes.

“Our challenges are systemic, and our solutions must be systemic,” he declared. “Innovation without infrastructure will fail. Policy without financing will falter. Investment without inclusivity will fall short.”

He emphasized that strategic coordination across sectors, sustained political will, and a shared national vision are essential ingredients for meaningful progress.

Importantly, Oke positioned agriculture not as a sector in isolation but as an economic catalyst capable of driving job creation, enhancing food sovereignty, boosting exports, and fortifying national security.

A Regional and Continental Imperative

Oke’s message found strong alignment with broader discussions at GTR West Africa 2025, where leaders across sectors acknowledged the urgent need to prioritize agriculture in the face of mounting vulnerabilities.

Africa’s agricultural potential, long discussed but largely unrealized, holds the key to solving multiple regional challenges from youth unemployment to food import dependence to rural poverty. But realizing this potential requires more than rhetoric; it demands deliberate investments in value addition, technology adoption, infrastructure development, and market integration.

Speakers across the event repeatedly echoed that no African nation can achieve sustainable growth without securing its food systems. Nigeria, as the continent’s most populous country, holds a pivotal role in setting the pace.

A Call to Collective Action

Concluding his address, Timi Oke issued a resounding call for collective action.

“If we want to avoid a future of chronic hunger, economic instability, and lost potential, we must act — and act now,” he urged. “We have the knowledge, we have the resources, and we have the people. What we need is the will to invest wisely, collaborate deeply, and innovate fearlessly.”

He invited all stakeholders from government ministries to international donors, from commercial banks to tech entrepreneurs to step up and be part of a new agricultural revolution that is inclusive, resilient, and transformative.

“The seeds of our future prosperity are in our hands,” he said. “It is up to us to nurture them today or risk reaping the consequences tomorrow.”

As Nigeria navigates the challenging terrain of economic recovery and climate resilience, voices like Timi Oke’s serve as a vital reminder that bold leadership, strategic investment, and visionary collaboration are not just desirable they are indispensable.