National Agricultural Development Fund NADF Graduates First Set of Trainees in National Agricultural Mechanisation Programme

NADF has graduated its first cohort of about 250 trainees under a national agricultural mechanisation programme targeting 4,000 tractor drivers and mechanics.

The programme targets the training of 4,000 tractor drivers and mechanics, with 250 participants drawn from across the six geopolitical zones trained in the first phase.

Speaking in a statement issued by NADF on Thursday, the Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the fund, Mohammed Ibrahim, said the graduation marked an important milestone in the Federal Government’s drive to modernise agriculture through mechanisation, innovation and human capital development.

Ibrahim said the programme was designed not only to train machinery operators and service providers but also to build the skills, systems and maintenance culture required to sustain agricultural productivity and strengthen Nigeria’s food and nutrition security.

According to the statement, the participants underwent intensive training in agricultural mechanisation service delivery, machinery and equipment management, occupational safety, enterprise development, sustainable maintenance, environmental conservation and environmental sustainability.

“Beyond technical skills, the programme has strengthened professionalism, enterprise mindset and operational discipline required to sustain an efficient mechanisation ecosystem,” Ibrahim said.

The NADF boss said the pilot cohort consisted of about 232 trainees, adding that their certification by the Industrial Training Fund would qualify them for inclusion in a national database of proficient mechanisation service providers being developed by NADF.

The National President of the Tractor Owners and Hiring Facilities Association of Nigeria, Abdullahi Mohammed, also commended NADF for bringing together participants from different parts of the country for the training.

He said while machinery vendors and manufacturers often provided initial training, their presence could not be guaranteed in every location where tractors operated.

“We need much of this training. The service provider wants training; the operator and the mechanic also need this type of training,” he said.

He appealed for continued collaboration between NADF, machinery manufacturers, vendors and service providers, as well as government support to make agricultural machinery more affordable.