Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago of Niger State has said his farm pays graduate workers a minimum wage of N500,000.
The self-styled farmer governor said this in Lagos during the opening ceremony of the FirstBank Agric & Export Expo 2026 with the theme “From farm to global markets: Building Nigeria’s Export Value Chain.”
Bago highlighted the potential of agriculture, particularly livestock production, as a major source of employment and economic growth.
According to the governor, the wages paid on his farm are higher than what many government workers earn.
“In our farm, we pay a graduate minimum 500,000 monthly,” Bago said.
“How much does the government pay? FirstBank, how much do you pay?”
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👉 JOIN WHATSAPP CHANNELBago said the disparity showed the potential of private agricultural enterprises to provide attractive employment opportunities.
“It means I can poach all FirstBank workers who earn less than my minimum wage, to my farm,” he said.
The governor called on more private investors to venture into agriculture.
“So, I want to encourage the private sector to do more,” he said.
Bago also warned that Nigeria’s dependence on food imports was unsustainable and called for a deliberate national policy to prioritise domestic production.
He emphasised what he called food sovereignty, describing it as paramount.
He said Nigeria had imported food worth more than $3 billion in the year, with the figure potentially reaching $4 billion before the end of the year.
“It is scary,” Bago said.
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