The Kaduna State Government says more than 500,000 hectares of farmland previously abandoned because of banditry have been recovered, allowing farmers to return to agricultural activities in parts of the state.
The Commissioner for Information and Culture, Ahmed Maiyaki, disclosed this on Monday during the annual retreat of the Kano Correspondents’ Chapel in Kaduna. He attributed the recovery to a combination of military operations, community-based security measures, early-warning systems and engagement with traditional and religious leaders.
According to Maiyaki, insecurity had previously allowed armed groups to exert control over communities, restrict farming activities and impose various demands on residents. The government’s security and peace initiatives, he said, have helped restore access to farmland and reopen economic activity in affected areas.
The commissioner said the recovery is particularly significant in areas including Giwa, Birnin Gwari and Kauru, where agricultural and commercial activities had been disrupted by insecurity. He also said markets have reopened and that between 20 and 30 cattle trucks now move weekly along roads that were previously considered unsafe.
The Kaduna government has linked the agricultural recovery to its wider peace strategy, which combines security operations with dialogue, intelligence sharing and community participation. Maiyaki said the state’s security architecture, supported by youths and community leaders, detected 75 potential threats between 2023 and early 2026, with 70 reportedly addressed before they developed into violent clashes.
The government has also increased its financial commitment to agriculture. Maiyaki said the state’s agriculture budget rose from N1.4 billion in 2023 to more than N100 billion in 2026, alongside the distribution of fertiliser and other support to farmers.
He claimed that the assistance had contributed to higher maize yields in some areas, with production increasing from an average of about three bags per hectare to as much as 22 bags per hectare. Such figures, however, are government-reported estimates and should be assessed against independent agricultural production data as the state’s recovery programme continues.
The scale of the farmland claim also needs to be understood in the context of Kaduna’s continuing security challenges. While the government says large areas have become accessible again, reports from farmers indicate that security conditions are not uniform across the state. Some farmers have returned to their fields in areas where security has improved, while others remain reluctant to resume farming in locations where attacks or the fear of attacks persist.
There is also some variation in the government’s own reporting on the scale of recovered farmland. In an earlier statement, Governor Uba Sani referred to more than 500,000 hectares of abandoned farmland being reclaimed, while a separate official account cited more than 20,000 hectares of previously inaccessible farmland. The figures may refer to different categories or stages of recovery, but the distinction is important when assessing the exact scale of the programme.
Beyond agriculture, the government says improved security has supported the reopening of schools, healthcare facilities, markets and transport routes in previously affected communities. The administration has presented the approach as a combination of kinetic security measures and a non-kinetic peace model designed to prevent communities from returning to prolonged instability.
The recovery of farmland could have significant implications for Kaduna’s food production and rural economy if access remains secure. Returning farmers to productive land can increase food supply, restore household incomes and reduce the economic consequences of displacement. But the durability of the recovery will ultimately depend on whether farmers can continue working their land without renewed attacks, extortion or displacement.
For now, the 500,000-hectare figure remains a claim by the Kaduna State Government rather than an independently verified measurement. The more important test will be whether the reclaimed areas remain accessible over successive farming seasons and whether the reported recovery translates into sustained increases in agricultural production and improved livelihoods.
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