Atiku Slams Tinubu Administration Over ₦796bn Reversal in Agricultural Trade Balance

₦796.40 Billion Reversal: Atiku cited official trade statistics showing Nigeria’s agricultural balance shifted from a ₦740.27 billion surplus in the first half of 2025 to a ₦56.13 billion deficit in the corresponding period of 2026.  

 Insecurity and High Production Costs: He noted that rampant insecurity in farming hubs, soaring transportation costs, and expensive industrial inputs have forced many local producers and processors out of competitive operation.  

 Raw Material Export Trap: Atiku criticized economic policies that leave Nigeria supplying cheap raw agricultural produce and crude oil while paying exorbitant prices to re-import processed finished goods.  

 Palliative Delivery Failures: He highlighted bottlenecks in government relief measures, noting that CNG conversion kits and subsidized transit buses meant to ease transportation burdens remain largely inaccessible to everyday Nigerians.

“Tinubu’s record is becoming painfully clear: Nigeria supplies raw crops and crude oil while Nigerians pay dearly for finished goods. A government that cannot turn our resources into affordable products and decent jobs has failed the people it was elected to serve.”

— Atiku Abubakar

Political Alternative & Economic Pledges

Setting the tone ahead of the 2027 general elections, Atiku outlined key policy reforms his proposed administration would implement to turn the agricultural sector around:

1. Day-One Production Subsidies: Restoring targeted, transparent production subsidies directly for domestic farmers, refiners, and manufacturing processors.  

2. Local Processing First: Incentivizing domestic value-addition with a core mandate: “Grow it here. Process it here. Refine it here. Create the jobs here.”  

3. Audited Sector Support: Implementing capped, independently audited relief funds to ensure subsidy benefits directly reduce consumer prices rather than being lost to middle-market leakages.