Why A $14.45 million financing arrangement backed by the Niger State Government has received legislative approval?

The Niger State House of Assembly has approved Governor Umaru Mohammed Bago’s request to obtain a N20.

4 billion loan facility for the execution of a major agricultural expansion project designed to enhance food production and logistics throughout the state.
The approval was granted during Tuesday’s plenary after lawmakers considered a letter sent by Governor Bago to the Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Abdulmalik Sarkindaji, seeking legislative approval for the transaction.
The correspondence, which was read on the floor of the Assembly by the Speaker, requested approval for a bank guarantee in favour of the United Bank for Africa (UBA) to facilitate a $14.45 million financing arrangement from the Saudi EXIM Bank for the Niger Food Security Systems and Logistics Company.
According to the governor, the proposed loan had earlier been approved by the State Executive Council during its 563rd meeting held on May 18, 2026, before it was forwarded to the Assembly for consideration.
Bago stated that the request was made in accordance with relevant provisions of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, as well as existing laws regulating public borrowing within the state.
He explained that the facility would have a repayment period of 84 months, including an 18-month moratorium, and would be used to support the expansion of operations of the Niger Food Security Systems and Logistics Company.
A key component of the initiative, the governor noted, is the establishment of a 3,000-hectare fully irrigated farm estate in Paikoro Local Government Area. The project is expected to strengthen the state’s agricultural value chain and improve food security.
Governor Bago urged members of the Assembly to grant accelerated approval for the request, emphasizing the project’s importance to the state’s agricultural transformation programme.
Following the presentation of the letter, lawmakers moved into an executive session where the proposal was deliberated upon and subsequently approved.
The approval represents another milestone in the Bago administration’s efforts to position Niger State as a leading agricultural hub through significant investments in mechanised farming, irrigation infrastructure, and food production systems.