{"id":18221,"date":"2026-06-20T13:03:15","date_gmt":"2026-06-20T13:03:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev.iita.org\/news-item\/iita-joins-oyo-state-afdb-and-stakeholders-to-launch-southwest-nigerias-first-special-agro-industrial-processing-zone\/"},"modified":"2026-06-29T16:50:44","modified_gmt":"2026-06-29T16:50:44","slug":"iita-joins-oyo-state-afdb-and-stakeholders-to-launch-southwest-nigerias-first-special-agro-industrial-processing-zone","status":"publish","type":"news-item","link":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/news-item\/iita-joins-oyo-state-afdb-and-stakeholders-to-launch-southwest-nigerias-first-special-agro-industrial-processing-zone\/","title":{"rendered":"IITA joins Oyo State, AfDB, and stakeholders to launch southwest Nigeria\u2019s first special agro-industrial processing zone"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Dr<\/a>
Dr Simeon Ehui giving his remarks at the groundbreaking ceremony of the Oyo State Agribusiness Industrial Hub \u2013 the first Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zone (SAPZ) in Southwest Nigeria.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a bold move to accelerate agricultural transformation in Nigeria, IITA<\/a> Directeur g\u00e9n\u00e9ral et CGIAR<\/a> Regional Director for Africa, Dr Simeon Ehui, joined the Oyo State Governor, Engineer Seyi Makinde, Honorable Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari – representing Vice President Senator Kashim Shettima, and the President of the Banque Africaine de D\u00e9veloppement (BAD)<\/a> Group, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, and other dignitaries at the groundbreaking ceremony of the Oyo State Agribusiness Industrial Hub \u2013 the first Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zone (SAPZ) in Southwest Nigeria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Held at Atan-Ijaiye, the event brought together prominent dignitaries, underscoring a shared national and regional commitment to leveraging agribusiness for food security, job creation, and sustainable economic growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"IITA<\/a>
IITA Director General Dr Simeon Ehui with the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abba Kyari at the groundbreaking event.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The SAPZ program, spearheaded by the AfDB, aims to catalyze agricultural industrialization by developing agro-based hubs in rural areas. These zones are strategically designed to harness local agricultural strengths, close value chain gaps, and boost processing and value addition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Governor Makinde described the hub as a game-changer for Oyo State and the nation. \u201cThese hubs are not standalone structures,\u201d he emphasized. \u201cThey are deliberately designed as interconnected anchors of our agribusiness ecosystem. They bring producers closer to processors, and link farms to markets.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr Ehui commended the initiative, noting its potential to catalyze inclusive growth. \u201cThis hub will unlock new opportunities for youth and women farmers, agripreneurs, and rural communities. It\u2019s a model for engaging the private sector and fostering meaningful employment,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr Adesina highlighted the SAPZ program’s overarching goals: \u201cOur objective is clear\u2014to reduce post-harvest losses, improve logistics and infrastructure, connect production with processing and markets, transform rural economies, and, most importantly, create jobs.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recognizing the hub\u2019s importance to agricultural development, Senator Kyari said, \u2018This initiative isn’t just an infrastructure project, but an indication that Nigeria can transform agriculture.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also speaking at the event, AfDB\u2019s Director General for Nigeria, Dr Abdul Kamara, provided context to the SAPZ vision. \u201cSAPZs are purpose-built to dismantle the bottlenecks in agro-industrial processing. They represent a vital initiative capable of unlocking Nigeria\u2019s full agricultural potential,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The SAPZ will be located on a 300-hectare Ijaiye site in Oyo State, part of a larger 3,000-hectare development. The hub will host diverse facilities, including a wholesale agrifood market, crop and livestock production zones, and state-of-the-art processing infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

IITA\u2019s involvement in the SAPZ groundbreaking ceremony highlights the institute\u2019s commitment to strategic partnerships that foster food security, economic resilience, and inclusive agricultural growth across Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contribu\u00e9 par \u2018Timilehin Osunde<\/em><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In a bold move to accelerate agricultural transformation in Nigeria, IITA Director General and CGIAR Regional Director for Africa, Dr Simeon Ehui<\/p>","protected":false},"featured_media":18222,"template":"","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}}},"tags":[],"science-area":[],"program":[],"location":[32],"news-type":[],"hub":[61],"crop":[],"impact-areas":[],"item-year":[203],"class_list":["post-18221","news-item","type-news-item","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","location-nigeria","hub-western-africa","item-year-203"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-item\/18221","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-item"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news-item"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-item\/18221\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19815,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-item\/18221\/revisions\/19815"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18222"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18221"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18221"},{"taxonomy":"science-area","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/science-area?post=18221"},{"taxonomy":"program","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/program?post=18221"},{"taxonomy":"location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/location?post=18221"},{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=18221"},{"taxonomy":"hub","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hub?post=18221"},{"taxonomy":"crop","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/crop?post=18221"},{"taxonomy":"impact-areas","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/impact-areas?post=18221"},{"taxonomy":"item-year","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/item-year?post=18221"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}