Vice President Kashim Shettima has launched the federal government’s asset restoration programme as part of ongoing efforts by the administration of President Bola Tinubu to restore and revive the nation’s industrial and agricultural capacity.
The programme, led by the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), seeks to restore over 26,000 broken down but serviceable heavy-duty machines and repurpose nearly 500,000 component scraps that have been lying idle across the country.
Speaking during the launch of the programme at the Borno State agricultural mechanisation farm centre in Maiduguri yesterday, the vice president said the objective of the programme was to reduce waste, cut unnecessary spending, and power national development through localised innovation and sustainable asset management.
Shortly after inaugurating the initiative, Shettima proceeded to Borno State University where he also inaugurated a power infrastructure project executed by the Niger Delta Power Holding Company Limited (NDPHC).
The power project implemented under the Distribution Intervention Projects, includes a 1X7.5MVA, 33/11KV injection substation, 3km of 33KV line, 2.5km of 11KV line, 2.5km of LT line, and 3 nos. 500KVA distribution transformers.
Shettima said: “For so long, we have been profiled as a nation with poor maintenance culture. This dysfunction cuts across both the private and public sectors, and we owe it to ourselves to say: enough is enough.
The vice president reaffirmed that the Tinubu administration is committed to building a productive, self-reliant, and diversified economy, with strategic investments in infrastructure, innovation, and local capacity at the core of that transformation.
“This initiative is a response to our cross-generational dilemma about what to do with abandoned and poorly maintained assets of the nation—of the people. It’s a powerful shift in how we think about value, sustainability, and innovation,” he said.
Shettima stressed the need to have a national inventory of value waiting to be unlocked, saying that as such “we must commend NASENI for stepping forward with this brilliant idea to mitigate a national tragedy.”
The vice president also noted NASENI’s contributions to national development through technology transfer, local engineering, and adaptive innovation, especially in areas such as Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) retrofitting, renewable energy, and agricultural mechanisation.
“We can’t create durable Nigerian solutions to Nigerian problems unless we localise global technologies. Relevant agencies must be supported to point us towards a stabler nation and a promising future,” Shettima said.
Praising the leadership of NASENI’s Executive Vice Chairman, Khalil Halilu, the Shettima noted that the agency’s renewed direction is marked by “vision, urgency, and clarity of purpose.”
“The direction NASENI is headed is one driven by action, impact, innovation, and awareness of what the nation needs,” he said.
Shettima also called for public cooperation in safeguarding the assets that will be restored, explaining that these resources belong to the Nigerian people.
“If we restore these vital assets, we must all protect them. These machines, these tools, and these technologies are the property of each of you—of each Nigerian. It’s your collective national inheritance,” he added.
Earlier, Governor of Borno State, Prof. Babagana Zulum, recalled that under the stewardship of Shettima as Governor of Borno State, 1,000 tractors and implements were procured, along with 1,000 units of planters; 250 units each of groundnut diggers, fertiliser broadcasters, rotovators, and bailers, as well as 25 units of combined harvesters, which is the single largest agricultural machinery investment in the state’s history.
“His training as an agricultural economist shone through every policy and decision, and today, that foresight is what has brought us here. This National Asset Restoration Programme we are launching would not have been possible without that foundational investment.
“It is not just a moment of celebration; it is a powerful testimony to the importance of continuity in leadership. And today, this proud son of Borno, now Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is championing the Renewed Hope Agenda of His Excellency President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR – an agenda in which agriculture remains central to national development,” the Governor said.
Zulum noted that Nigeria requires a minimum of 750,000 functional tractors to meet its agricultural needs, yet less than 10 per cent of that number is currently operational across the country.
He said that the Food And Agricultural Organisation (FAO) recommended tractor density of 1.5 horsepower per hectare, explaining that “here in Borno, our mechanization drive has faced serious setbacks, especially following the devastating floods of September 2024, which damaged a significant number of our agricultural machines.
He added: “That is why today’s intervention could not have come at a better time. The decision by NASENI to select Borno as the pilot state for the National Asset Restoration Programme is both strategic and timely. It offers us a lifeline to revive damaged assets and restore the capacity of our farmers to cultivate efficiently.
“Through the tireless efforts of NASENI and its technical partner, MECA, these machines are being brought back to life, and we appreciate their commitment to making this vision a reality.
“As a government, we are fully committed to ensuring that these restored assets are properly maintained and put to optimal use. We are putting in place a sustainable maintenance framework that promotes accountability, encourages local ownership, and ensures long-term functionality.”
Also speaking, Executive Vice Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NASENI, Halilu, said the agency’s national survey revealed that Nigeria holds over 47,000 broken-down or serviceable agricultural and law enforcement assets, adding that the cost to replace them will exceed N14 trillion.
“But at NASENI we asked a simple question. Why replace when we can restore them? With the right engineering, the right people and the right partnership, we found that we can recover these assets for just 15 to 25 per cent of their replacement value and still achieve full functionality.
“That is over N10 trillion in national savings, while restoring productivity, jobs and security on the ground. That is the power of engineering and that is the promise of NASENI.
“This programme is one more step in our mission to keep innovation at the heart of governance whether it is through clean energy, mechatronics or domestication of advanced technologies. NASENI is showing that Nigerian problems can have Nigerian engineering solutions,” he said.
On his part, Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, said the launching of the programme marked a defining moment in the ministry’s efforts to bring productivity back to the core of public service delivery across sectors.
He added that the National Asset Restoration Programme is a cross-cutting effort led by NASENI aimed at rehabilitating, optimizing and returning government old equipment, infrastructure and technology to full working condition whether agricultural, industrial or technological.
“It is about reviving hopes, reducing waste, unlocking dormant capacity and ensuring that public investment truly serves the needs of our citizens. For example, out of over 55,000 tractors estimated across the country, fewer than 10,000 remain operational. That is just one illustration of how under-utilized assets continue to cost us opportunities for growth,” Kyari said.
The dignitaries present at the event included the MD/CEO, Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC), Jennifer Adighije; the Director General, Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), Dr. Mohammed Bulama and Senior Special Assistant to the President on Special Needs and Equal Opportunities, Hon. Mohammed Abba Isa.
Others included: Members of Borno State Executive Council; Chairman, Presidential Implementation Committee on Technology Transfer, Dr. Muhammed Dahiru; Secretary to the Borno State Government, Malam Bukar Tijani; and Borno State Commissioner of Agriculture, Bawu Musami, among others
