The Founder and Chancellor of Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti, ABUAD, Aare Afe Babalola, SAN, has disbursed N11.2 million to 81 farmers across the 16 Local Government Areas of Ekiti State at the grand finale of the 2026 Annual Afe Babalola Agricultural Expo, ABA-EX.
The 2026 expo, which marked its 11th edition since inception in 2015, was held on weekend at the Sports Field Pavilion of the university, with farmers displaying various farm produce and 32 youths and women empowered with starter kits.
Babalola disclosed that cumulative cash awards under the scheme since inception now stands at N98 million, noting that the star prize has grown from N1 million in 2015 to N2 million for the overall Best Farmer in the state, while best farmers in the local governments now receive between N50,000 and N200,000.
The overall Best Farmer for the 2026 edition, Mr Sunday Osanyindoro, who went home with N2 million, said he retired from civil service to go into farming and now cultivates 25 hectares of oil palm.
Speaking at the event, Aare Babalola said his motivation for founding ABA-EX was to revive interest in agriculture and discourage indolence and begging, lamenting that many Nigerians have abandoned farming for white collar jobs or dependency on government palliatives.
“Farming is a divine vocation. God in His infinite wisdom established the Garden of Eden and asked Adam and his wife, Eve, to look after the Garden,” Babalola said.
He also cited the biblical injunction, “He who does not work does not deserve to eat,” adding that “The Nigerian Constitution provides that the government should provide the enabling environment for people to engage in productive ventures instead of buying rice and beans and distributing to the populace thereby encouraging indolence.”
Babalola recalled how Nigeria, before oil, was self-sufficient in food, was the world’s largest producer of palm oil and second largest producer of cocoa, but lost its pride of place after Malaysians took palm kernels from Nigeria to become world leader in palm oil export.
To sustain interest in agriculture at ABUAD, which was recently rated No.1 in Nigeria for five consecutive years, No.2 in Africa and No.72 globally by Times Higher Education Impact Rankings, Babalola said the university was forced to slash tuition by 50 per cent for Agriculture students and offer N250,000 seed money to graduates to start agri-business when no student applied for the course two years after inception.
Unveiling his future plans, the legal icon announced plans to establish Ekiti Farmers’ House in Ado-Ekiti, in partnership with the state government and 16 local governments, to acquire modern farm implements such as bulldozers, ridgers, ploughs and harvesters for rent to farmers at low rates.
“As things are today, no graduate will want to engage in farming using the old hoes and cutlasses like his father did,” he said, stressing that “Nigerians, particularly our youths and university graduates will imbibe modern Agriculture. It is possible. It is practicable and it is achievable.”
He urged winners to invest their prizes wisely, noting that “It is not the quantum of money one has that matters, but what one does with the little one has,” and lamented that insecurity including kidnapping, robbery and herdsmen invasion has made “farming more discouraged” as life is no longer safe at home, on the farm or on the road.
Earlier, Vice-Chancellor of ABUAD, Prof. Smaranda Olarinde, who represented the Founder at the opening ceremony on Friday, described farmers as critical contributors to food security, while Chairman of the Local Organising Committee, Prof. Abiodun Ojo, urged the 32 empowered youths and women, two from each local government, to see the opportunity as a responsibility to build sustainable businesses.
