FG Laments Decline in Students Applying for Agricultural Courses in Nigeria
The Nigerian Ministry of Education has expressed concern over the worrying decline in students’ enrollment in agricultural courses at higher institutions. In recent years, fewer and fewer students have shown interest in studying agricultural-related courses at the tertiary level.
Agriculture was once one of the most respected and vital fields, but now struggles to attract young minds, raising a big question: Why are students turning away from this critical sector? What could it mean for the country’s future of food security?
A Decline in Agricultural Education
Several decades ago, pursuing a degree in agriculture was highly respected, serving as a cornerstone of Nigeria’s early economy and providing numerous jobs. Today, however, this is no longer the case. After completing secondary school, students rarely view agriculture as an appealing career option.
According to a report presented by the Minister of Education during the 2025 official presentation of a new curriculum for agricultural education, he noted that the 2024 UTME statistics on applications and admissions showed that 47.92% of the allocated admissions slots were not utilized despite the federal government’s heavy investment in the sector.
While there are thousands of open slots in agricultural courses annually, only a fraction are filled, posing a serious challenge to Nigeria’s long-term food security and economic growth.
Reports from JAMB and insights from education experts showed that agricultural courses now receive some of the lowest application numbers among all University programs. Despite the Government’s efforts in building Universities of Agriculture around the country and providing thousands of slots in agricultural programs, only a fraction have been taken.
This silent decline has become serious enough to catch the attention of the Federal Ministry of Education, which fears that the continued neglect of agricultural education could endanger the country’s long-term food security and economic stability.
Behind the Data
While agriculture remains one of the key programs in Nigerian universities and polytechnics, applicants have drastically dropped compared to previous years.
In the past five years, less than 5% of admitted students considered agriculture as their first choice. Meanwhile, disciplines like business administration, computer science, medicine, and engineering attract overwhelming interest. This reflects a broader socio-economic trend. Nigerian youths often associate success with whit-collar professions, leaving agriculture in the dust as a symbol of poverty.
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Why Students Are Losing Interest in Agriculture
1. Perception
Nigerian students don’t consider agriculture as a modern industry driven by technology. This perception failed to catch up with today’s reality. Modern agriculture today includes drone mapping, data analytics, agribusiness management, and AI-assisted irrigation.
2. Outdated Curriculum
One of the reasons Nigerian students are losing interest in agricultural courses is the outdated curriculum. This outdated curriculum gives little to no attention to modern realities such as agritech. Students learn more theories than practical, which gives them limited exposure to modern tools and methods, causing them to lose interest quickly.
3. Career Prospects
Life after graduation seems difficult for agricultural students in the labor market. Fresh graduates struggle to find stable jobs, even though government employment in the sector is limited, and the private sector still struggles to build a strong and visible agribusiness pathway. This discourages university applicants from choosing agriculture as a career path.
4. Societal Influence
In Nigeria, parents play an influential role in career choices. Most of them consider agriculture as a last choice for students who are unable to get admission into more prestigious programs. Peer pressure adds up, too. No student wants to be a farmer while their peer are doctors and engineers.
The Future Consequences
The long-term consequences of these trends are catastrophic for both youths and Nigeria as a nation. Some of which include.
- Economic Impact: According to the Central Bank of Nigeria, agriculture remains a vital component of Nigeria’s economy, contributing more than a fifth of the GDP and employing more than two-thirds of the total working population. However, this sector continues to face challenges that threaten its enormous significance in the Nigerian economy.
- Thread to Food Security: If every Nigerian student backs away from agriculture, innovation, crop production, livestock management, and food processing. It poses a threat to the nation’s food security as the country will lack experts in this sector.
- Decline in Agricultural Innovation: When young people refuse to further their education in agriculture, especially in agricultural engineering and technology, a country faces an innovation decline that may negatively impact its economy and human development.
- Overreliance on imported raw and processed food: Nigeria spends $10 billion annually on food imports, which is not healthy for a developing economy like Nigeria.
- Youth Unemployment: If properly harnessed, the agricultural sector could employ millions of youth.
How Government Can Revive the Dying Sector
Reviving the agricultural sector means setting Nigeria’s economy on a growth trajectory and shouldn’t be given a second thought. The Federal Government, together with the State Government, has done a lot in recent years. In its efforts to rebuild the fallen walls of the agricultural sector and to restore hope and encourage students to embrace agriculture as a prestigious discipline. Yet, their efforts yield little to no results. Below are some of the key recommendations that could set the nation on a winning track.
- Establishment of more universities of agriculture across the country.
- Provision of scholarship for agricultural students.
- Organize agricultural workshops and conferences..
- Overhaul of agricultural education curriculum.
- Introduction of agro-technology in the classroom.
- Sponsor agricultural innovation.
- Encourages private investment in agriculture.
- Raise the salaries and bonuses of agriculture tutors/lecturers.
- Invest in modern agriculture.
Conclusion
Nigerian students’ refusal to embrace agriculture as a discipline is rooted from the government’s failure to catchup with the ever-evolving world of agro-technology. Leaving young people in the dark, which makes them perceive agriculture as the discipline of the enslaved.
Though the government efforts are commendable. Yet, much still needs to be done to bring back the young population to the farm, this time not with traditional cutlasses and hoes, but with sophisticated Agri-Technology, advanced machinery, and proper financing.
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