Niger State Agricultural Investment Plan and Household Food Insecurity Among Smallholder Farmers in Niger State.

Agricultural investment plans are increasingly promoted as policy instruments for improving productivity, strengthening rural livelihoods, and reducing household food insecurity. However, the extent to which such interventions translate into sustained food security outcomes among smallholder farmers remains a major policy concern. This study examined the Niger State Agricultural Investment Plan and household food insecurity among smallholder farmers in Niger State. Anchored in the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework, the study conceptualized food insecurity as a livelihood outcome shaped by access to finance, extension services, infrastructure, agricultural technologies, market systems, and vulnerability conditions. A mixed-methods descriptive design was adopted. Quantitative data were obtained from 360 smallholder farmers across six Local Government Areas selected from the three senatorial zones of Niger State, while qualitative insights were generated through interviews with agricultural stakeholders of the state, extension workers, and farmer representatives. Data were analysed using frequencies, percentages, mean scores, composite mean analysis, and thematic interpretation. The study discovered that systemic barriers, particularly limited access to affordable credit, inadequate extension follow-up, poor rural infrastructure, and uneven distribution of agricultural inputs, constrained the effective implementation of NSAIP interventions. The study also found that sustained reduction in household food insecurity beyond 2025 requires improved agricultural financing, stronger institutional coordination, increased investment in climate-smart technologies, better market and storage systems, and continuous policy review based on farmers’ experiences. The study concludes that NSAIP has the potential to support food security, but its effectiveness depends on strengthening the livelihood-support environment around smallholder farmers and therefore recommends an integrated smallholder support framework and a post-2025 NSAIP review and coordination platform to improve implementation, resilience, and household food security outcomes.