Cross River State Governor Bassey Edet Otu has flagged off the 2026 Wet Season Farming Programme with the direct distribution of improved seed yam inputs to farmers across the state, according to MSME Africa. The launch was timed to ensure smallholder farmers receive critical inputs early enough to maximise the planting window.
What Farmers Received
The state distributed eight metric tonnes of improved seed yams alongside a fleet of newly procured equipment that includes eight bulldozers, five excavators, 30 tractors, 30 combine harvesters, 40 boom sprayers, five 30-tonne tippers and two payloaders, as MSME Africa reported. The government said the tractors and harvesters would lift mechanised farming and crop productivity, while the bulldozers, excavators and tippers would open rural access roads linking farmlands to markets and processing centres.
A Food Basket Ambition
A representative of the administration, Johnson Ebokpo Jr., said agriculture remains the backbone of the state's economy and a core pillar of its People First agenda, stating that the government is taking practical steps to make food security a reality and to position Cross River as a food basket for the South-South and the country, according to MSME Africa. The launch comes as subnational governments across Nigeria step up agricultural spending in response to food inflation and supply chain pressure.
FoodPrices Nigeria tracks yam and other tuber prices across Lagos markets. Production support in supply states like Cross River feeds into the national picture that ultimately shapes what households in Lagos pay.