Farmland Investment?
When people think about investment in Nigeria, farmland rarely tops the list.
Right?
They imagine stocks, real estate, or maybe a small business.
Yet, farmland is quietly one of the most powerful wealth builders you can step into today.
The truth is, Nigeria has one of the fastest-growing populations in the world, currently estimated at over 220 million people.
According to the United Nations, that figure will double by 2050, making Nigeria the third most populous country globally after India and China.
Population growth means food demand, and food demand means farmland will always be valuable.
At present, the National Bureau of Statistics reports that agriculture contributes about 25 percent to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product.
Yet, despite this massive contribution, Nigeria still spends over $10 billion annually importing food.
When examining farmland globally, it is one of the most stable assets in terms of value appreciation.
A report from Savills, a global real estate consultancy, found that average farmland prices worldwide have risen by more than 60 percent in the last decade.
In Nigeria, land values tell a similar story.
In Oyo State, a hectare of farmland that sold for about ₦300,000 in 2015 now goes for between ₦1.2 million and ₦2 million, depending on location.
That’s a four- to six-fold increase in less than 10 years.
Farmland not only produces crops that can be sold but also appreciates, giving you a double income stream.
If you were to compare that with fixed deposits in Nigerian banks, where annual interest rates hover around 6 to 8 percent, farmland returns look extraordinary.
So,
How do I start a farmland investment?
Secure the right land
The Nigerian Institute of Soil Science estimates that about 70 million hectares of Nigeria’s landmass is suitable for agriculture, but less than half of this is being used effectively.
That leaves millions of hectares available for investment, but not all land is created equal.
Farmland in Ogun State may appreciate faster because of proximity to Lagos markets, while farmland in Taraba or Benue may offer cheaper entry points with higher fertility but slower resale appreciation.
As an investor, you must decide whether you are prioritizing immediate farming income or long-term land value growth.
Financing farmland investment
Some people buy outright, while others go through agricultural cooperatives or investment platforms that allow fractional ownership.
According to a 2024 PwC report, alternative agricultural investment platforms in Nigeria have grown by more than 300 percent in five years, with millennials and Gen Zs being the largest users.
This tells you that the new generation of investors already sees farmland as more than just a rural asset—it is becoming digitalized and accessible.
Still, owning the land directly often gives you better control and security.
Farmland is an appreciating asset that can be used as collateral for loans, transferred across generations, or leased out to farmers for steady rental income.
The lucrativeness of farmland investment also depends on what you choose to do with the land.
Some investors focus purely on holding and flipping, buying at a low price in rural areas and reselling when development pushes demand higher.
Others actively farm, producing cash crops such as maize, cassava, rice, or oil palm.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, one hectare of maize in Nigeria yields about 2 tons on average, though improved methods can raise this to 5 tons.
With maize selling at around ₦400,000 per ton in 2025, even a modest yield can produce ₦800,000 revenue per hectare per season.
Multiply that across multiple hectares, and the numbers start to make sense.
Farmland is one of the few assets that not only grows in value but also produces annual income when farmed.
Farmland leasing
Many Nigerians in cities want to invest in farming but do not have direct access to land.
Investors who buy large parcels can lease them out seasonally to smallholder farmers at attractive rates.
For example, leasing one hectare of farmland in fertile zones of Ogun or Oyo goes for between ₦60,000 and ₦120,000 per year.
An investor with 20 hectares can make ₦1.2 million to ₦2.4 million annually without lifting a hoe, while still keeping the land as an appreciating asset.
This model is popular among diaspora Nigerians who want exposure to agriculture without the operational risks.
When we talk about statistics, farmland becomes even more convincing.
According to the World Bank, the demand for food in Sub-Saharan Africa is projected to more than triple by 2030 due to urbanization and income growth. Nigeria, being the largest economy in Africa, will carry a huge share of that demand.
The African Development Bank also reports that the food and agribusiness sector in Africa will be worth $1 trillion by 2030, up from about $300 billion today.
If you own farmland in Nigeria, you are literally sitting on the foundation of that trillion-dollar opportunity.
But farmland investment also comes with challenges you must be prepared for.
Land ownership in Nigeria is governed by the Land Use Act, which vests control of all land in the hands of state governors.
This means you must do proper due diligence to ensure that the land you are buying is free from government acquisition and family disputes.
Many investors have lost money by purchasing land without verifying its title.
Another challenge is infrastructure.
Some farmlands are cheap because they are in remote areas with poor road access, making it difficult to move produce to market. However, these challenges are also opportunities.
Investors who secure land in these areas before infrastructure catches up often make the biggest profits when roads are constructed or new developments arrive.
The beauty of farmland investment is in its longevity
Stocks can crash, currencies can devalue, and governments can change policies, but land is permanent.
A hectare of farmland today will still be a hectare of farmland in 100 years.
If anything, it will be worth more because of population growth and limited supply. In Lagos, land that once sold for ₦50,000 per plot in Ikorodu in the 1990s now sells for millions.
Farmland follows the same logic, only with the added advantage of generating income while you hold it.
That’s why wealthy families and institutions around the world, from Bill Gates to pension funds, are heavily invested in farmland.
They understand that it is not just about crops but about control of the most important resource humanity has: food.
How To Invest In Farmland
One of the reasons farmland is attractive is that it generates returns in multiple ways.
Unlike some assets that only pay you when you sell, farmland can create cash flow through leasing, crop production, and agribusiness partnerships.
For instance, an investor can buy farmland and lease it to farmers for annual rent, which creates predictable income.
In 2024, data from Nigeria’s agricultural investment platforms showed that farmland leases in regions like Ogun and Oyo averaged between ₦60,000 and ₦100,000 per acre annually, depending on proximity to urban centers and the type of crop suitability.
That figure might sound modest on the surface, but when scaled to hundreds of acres, it becomes significant.
Beyond leasing, investors can also engage directly in farming by planting crops with high demand like cassava, maize, rice, and oil palm.
The profit margins here depend on yield, market prices, and production efficiency, but they tend to outperform inflation because food prices rise consistently.
If you look at farmland investment from a global lens, the numbers tell a story of stability and resilience.
The NCREIF Farmland Index, which tracks farmland returns in the United States, reported an average annual return of about 10% over the past 20 years, outperforming many traditional assets like bonds.
While Nigeria does not yet have a standardized farmland return index, similar patterns exist locally because of the rising cost of food.
The National Bureau of Statistics showed that food inflation in Nigeria stood at over 35% in 2024, which means that farmland producing staple crops has been appreciating far faster than other types of investments.
This trend makes farmland not just a productive asset but also a hedge against inflation.
Location is one of the most critical factors
Land values differ widely depending on state, accessibility, and soil quality.
In Ogun State, farmland near Sagamu or Abeokuta can cost between ₦1.5 million and ₦3 million per acre, while in remote parts of Oyo, the same acre might go for as low as ₦500,000.
These figures show that entry points exist for both high-net-worth individuals and small-scale investors.
What makes this investment appealing is that, unlike urban real estate, farmland does not depreciate due to oversupply or empty houses. Instead, it appreciates because arable land is finite, and the demand for food keeps growing.
Another angle to farmland investment is export-driven agriculture.
Nigeria spends billions annually importing food items like wheat, rice, and dairy, yet it also exports cash crops like cocoa, sesame seeds, and palm oil.
Investors who focus on farmland that supports export crops can tap into international markets where profit margins are higher.
For example, cocoa prices in 2024 reached record highs above $5,500 per metric ton, the highest in nearly 50 years, due to supply shortages in West Africa.
Investors holding cocoa farmland in Ondo or Cross River are therefore benefiting not only from domestic demand but also from global price surges.
This kind of dual market advantage makes farmland one of the most versatile assets available.
Urbanization and food demand
As cities expand, farmland close to urban areas will become even more valuable for both farming and eventual real estate conversion.
Reports suggest that by 2030, Lagos State alone will need an additional 5 million tons of food annually to feed its population.
Investors who own farmland in nearby states like Ogun and Osun will be positioned to meet that demand while also riding the wave of land appreciation.
The government’s renewed focus on agriculture as a means of diversifying the economy away from oil further boosts the long-term outlook.
Programs offering credit to farmers, subsidized inputs, and support for mechanization are slowly creating an enabling environment for private investors.
How to make millions in farmland investment
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, every hectare of productive farmland in Nigeria has the potential to generate between ₦800,000 and ₦1.5 million annually, depending on the crop.
Take cassava, for example, a crop that Nigeria produces more than 60 million metric tons of annually, the highest in the world.
An acre can yield up to 20 tons, and with cassava selling at about ₦90,000 per ton in 2025, that translates to ₦1.8 million gross revenue from a single acre before deducting costs.
Scale that to 50 acres, and you are looking at nearly ₦90 million in revenue over a cycle.
This is the kind of mathematics that demonstrates why farmland is not just an ordinary investment but a goldmine for those who understand scale.
Land appreciation
Nigeria’s population is growing at about 2.4% annually, and projections from the United Nations suggest the country will surpass 400 million people by 2050.
More people mean more mouths to feed, and more urban expansion swallowing up rural areas.
Farmland located near cities like Lagos, Ibadan, Port Harcourt, and Abuja does not just produce crops; it also appreciates as urbanization spreads.
In Ogun State, for instance, farmlands that were sold for ₦300,000 per acre in 2015 are now priced at ₦2 million to ₦3 million per acre in 2025.
That is more than 500% appreciation in a decade.
Investors who bought in early have watched their assets multiply in value without lifting a finger.
By combining active farming income with the long-term appreciation of the land itself, farmland delivers a double-edged return that accelerates wealth creation.
It is also important to consider export-driven agriculture as one of the fastest tracks to millions. Crops like cocoa, sesame seeds, cashew, ginger, and palm oil are in hot demand internationally.
Nigeria exported over 350,000 metric tons of sesame seeds in 2024, making it one of the country’s top non-oil exports.
With sesame seeds selling at about $1,400 per ton globally, farmers and investors with large farmland allocations have been cashing out massively. Cocoa is another classic example.
Prices surged above $5,500 per metric ton in 2024, the highest in decades, due to supply shortages.
An investor who owns 20 hectares of cocoa farmland in Ondo or Cross River State is not just farming, but participating in a billion-dollar international market where the returns far exceed what local sales would bring.
These export crops demonstrate that farmland is not only about subsistence farming or local markets; it is a gateway to global wealth when managed strategically.
Value addition
Instead of simply selling raw crops, investors who set up small processing facilities increase profit margins significantly.
Take oil palm as an example. A ton of palm fruits may sell for ₦150,000, but when processed into palm oil, the same ton can fetch over ₦300,000.
In 2025, a 25-liter keg of palm oil sells for about ₦40,000 in Nigeria, almost double the price just five years ago.
Investors who own palm plantations and processing mills are not just farmers; they are agribusiness moguls capturing value at every stage of the chain. The same applies to cassava.
When processed into garri, flour, or starch, the profit margin doubles or triples.
It is this kind of vertical integration that transforms farmland investment from modest gains into millions in revenue.
Leasing farmland
Not every investor has the time or expertise to farm directly.
Instead, farmland can be leased out to professional farmers who pay annual rent.
In 2024, farmland leasing rates in states like Ogun, Oyo, and Ekiti averaged between ₦60,000 and ₦100,000 per acre annually, depending on soil quality and location.
An investor with 200 acres leased at ₦80,000 per acre earns ₦16 million annually without engaging in direct farming.
Scale that to 500 acres, and the figure climbs to ₦40 million yearly.
This passive income model is attractive for investors who want exposure to agriculture without operational involvement.
What makes it even more appealing is that farmland retains its value while producing rent income, which is rare for most asset classes.
The statistics backing farmland’s profitability in Nigeria are compelling.
The National Bureau of Statistics reported that agriculture contributed about 25% to Nigeria’s GDP in 2024, employing over 35% of the labor force.
Food inflation rose above 35% in the same year, which means demand for food is outpacing supply at alarming rates.
Farmland investors who control the supply of staple crops are therefore positioned to dictate pricing and enjoy wider margins. Globally, the farmland market has also proven its resilience.
The NCREIF Farmland Index in the United States has shown an average return of 10% annually for the past two decades, outperforming bonds and many equities. Nigeria, with its rapidly growing population and underutilized arable land, presents an even greater potential for farmland investors.
The long-term outlook for farmland in Nigeria remains bullish.
With the African Continental Free Trade Agreement(AfCFTA) creating a single market for over 1.3 billion people, Nigeria’s farmland investors have the chance to supply food not just locally but across the continent.
By 2030, Africa’s food market is projected to reach $1 trillion annually, and farmland is at the center of that growth.
Investors who start building their farmland portfolios now will be sitting on assets that are not only income-generating but also in high demand both regionally and globally.