Kaduna Govt Reclaims 500,000 Hectares of Farmland from Bandits, Says Commissioner

Photo Credit: Kaduna Governor Uba Sani / Photo courtesy of The Sun Nigeria
Kaduna Govt Reclaims 500,000 Hectares of Farmland from Bandits, Says Commissioner

The Kaduna State Government has announced the recovery of over 500,000 hectares of farmland previously under the control of bandits, a development that has allowed displaced farmers to return to cultivation.

The Commissioner for Information and Culture, Ahmed Maiyaki, disclosed this on Sunday in Kaduna at a Gala Night organized by the Kano Correspondents’ Chapel as part of its annual retreat.

Maiyaki said that at the height of insecurity, bandits had taken control of several rural communities, preventing farmers from accessing their lands and crippling agricultural activities.

He explained that the turnaround was achieved through community-based security initiatives and early warning systems, where local stakeholders collaborate with the government to detect and neutralize threats before they escalate.

According to him, “It was so bad that farmers could not go to their farms. But today, with community-led security and early warning systems, peace has returned, and our farmers are back on the land.”

The commissioner revealed that between 2023 and early 2026, the state identified 75 potential security threats, with 70 successfully contained before degenerating into communal or religious crises.

He noted that the improved security has boosted agriculture in the state. The agricultural budget was increased from N1.4 billion in 2023 to over N100 billion in 2026, while free fertilizer distribution has helped raise maize yields from about 3 bags per hectare to up to 22 bags.

Maiyaki added that road construction and rehabilitation across 12 local government areas have also improved the transportation of farm produce to markets, describing the security effort as part of a broader strategy focused on agriculture, education, and healthcare.

Source: The Sun Nigeria –