MAKURDI, BENUE — June 28, 2026
Fifty years ago, on February 3, 1976, Benue State was carved from the defunct Benue-Plateau State by the military administration of General Murtala Mohammed, born alongside second-generation states such as Bauchi, Borno, Imo, Niger, Ogun, and Ondo. It entered the Nigerian Federation with hope, cultural confidence, and vast agricultural promise. Today, as the state marks its golden jubilee, that promise remains unfulfilled, a story of extraordinary potential constrained by persistent insecurity, governance failures, and decades of missed opportunities.
Yet, even amid the challenges, there are signs of renewal. Governor Hyacinth Alia's administration has recorded notable achievements in infrastructure, fiscal discipline, and industrial revival. The question at 50 is whether Benue can finally translate its immense endowments into lasting prosperity for its people.
The Achievements: What Benue Has Built
Agriculture: The Food Basket That Feeds a Nation
Benue's identity as Nigeria's "Food Basket" is not mere rhetoric. The state's fertile Guinea Savanna soils first embraced soybean farming in 1937, and by 1947, Benue was already exporting nine tons of soybeans. Today, Benue accounts for a significant share of Nigeria's 758,000 metric tons of annual soybean output, cultivating a large portion of the country's 780,000 hectares under soybean. With 4.8 million hectares of arable land, including 1.2 million hectares already accessible for cultivation, the state remains critical to Nigeria's food security.
Beyond soybeans, Benue's floodplains yield yam, rice, cassava, sorghum, millet, and sesame, "Benue Gold" feeding the nation. The state stands as the indisputable leader in citrus and soybean production, with agriculture remaining the highest employer of labour in the state.
Mineral Wealth: Over 45 Deposits Waiting to Be Tapped
Beneath Benue's soil lies a treasure trove. The state possesses more than 45 identified solid mineral deposits, including gold, lithium, limestone, barite, kaolin, lead, and zinc, with prospects for oil and gas development. Limestone deposits in Gboko, Utonkon, and Igumale already power the Dangote Cement operation. Gold and lithium discoveries in Kwande Local Government Area have attracted the attention of foreign miners, both legal and illegal.
Infrastructure: A State Under Construction
Under Governor Alia, Benue has witnessed an infrastructure push unprecedented in recent memory. The administration has undertaken the construction of over 390 kilometres of roads across all 23 Local Government Areas. Sixteen township roads have been completed in the first phase, with 25 more currently under construction in the state capital.
The Federal Government has also flagged off the construction of a flyover at Wurukum Roundabout in Makurdi, a major component of the $950 million Makurdi–9th Mile Road dualisation project funded by the China Exim Bank. The 260-kilometre project is expected to boost regional connectivity, stimulate commerce, and unlock agricultural potential across the nation's food basket.
The Benue State Executive Council has additionally approved N149.5 billion for critical infrastructure projects, including road expansions, water supply restoration, and government facility upgrades. The revival of the Benue Brewery, producer of Zeva Premier Beer, and the commissioning of the Benfruit Concentrate Plant mark significant steps toward industrialisation.
Fiscal Discipline: From Negative Growth to Recovery
Governor Alia's administration has recorded remarkable fiscal progress. On assumption of office, the state was on a negative growth trajectory of 3.5 percent, but GDP has since leapt to N12.8 trillion. Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) doubled in 2024 to over N20 billion and is expected to exceed N30 billion in 2025. The 2025 budget of ₦550.1 billion represents a 47.5 percent increment over the 2024 revised budget, with 65 percent, ₦357.6 billion devoted to capital expenditure.
The Obstacles: What Has Held Benue Back
Insecurity: The Crisis That Won't Go Away
Despite its agricultural abundance, Benue has become one of Nigeria's most volatile states. Since 2021, at least 930 people have died in farmer-herder violence in the state, while more than half a million residents have been displaced. In June 2025 alone, coordinated attacks reportedly killed about 200 people in Guma Local Government Area.
As of December 31, 2025, a monarch in the state reported that 701 people had been killed, while farms and properties worth billions of naira had been destroyed. The violence has become increasingly self-sustaining, with armed groups now financing operations through kidnapping, cattle rustling, and illicit mining.
The impact on farming has been devastating. In Ukum Local Government Area, farmers have been chased from their orange orchards by armed herdsmen, with one farmer having his hand brutally cut during an unprovoked attack. Across many rural communities, crops are left to rot, not because they failed to grow, but because their owners cannot safely return to harvest them. Farming has become a life-threatening activity.
The Anti-Open Grazing Law: A Paper Tiger
Benue enacted the anti-open grazing law in 2017 to curb violence, yet its implementation has generated polarised reactions. Governor Alia has candidly acknowledged that the law cannot be fully enforced because it is not backed by national legislation. The enforcement body, the Benue State Community Volunteer Guards are not authorised to bear sophisticated weapons, while armed herder militias wield AK-47 and AK-49 rifles. When the state guards attempt to enforce the law, violators simply flee to neighbouring Nasarawa State, where the law does not exist.
Infrastructure Decay: Decades of Neglect
While the current administration has made strides, the accumulated neglect of decades is immense. Major road networks remain unfinished or dilapidated, and rural communities are cut off from markets. Industrial zones announced decades ago exist only on paper. The Benue condition has been described as "a humanitarian crisis, a cesspool of persistent violence, displacement of farming communities, and prolonged insecurity".
Education: From Excellence to Erosion
Once home to respected institutions including Government College Katsina-Ala, Mount St. Michaels Secondary School, Aliade, and Government College Makurdi, Benue has seen declining educational outcomes. Despite a proliferation of doctoral degrees and professors, the state's Human Development Index remains a "pitiful indicator of low literacy". Among IDP populations, 38 per cent have no formal education, and just three per cent have tertiary education. About 76 per cent of children aged 7 to 14 do not develop foundational literacy and numeracy skills.
Health: A System in Crisis
Benue health indicators are alarming. The state has a maternal mortality ratio estimated at 1,046 deaths out of every 100,000 live births, placing Benue at the top nationally. The under-five mortality rate is as high as 52.5 percent. Lassa fever remains endemic, with 156 suspected cases and a case fatality rate of 40 percent recorded in the first half of 2025 alone.
Youth Unemployment: A Ticking Time Bomb
The absence of agro-allied industries has been identified as a primary driver of high unemployment, as production activities remain scanty. Benue youth are described as "jobless, unemployed, and unemployable because they lack skills". The state government has launched initiatives to create over 100,000 digital jobs, but the scale of the challenge remains enormous.
Flooding: Recurring Disaster
Benue's floodplains, which make agriculture possible, also make the state vulnerable to recurring floods. Devastating floods ravaged the state in 2012, 2017, 2018, and 2022. In September 2025, multiple farmer-herder clashes, explosions, and floods were reported across Agatu, Guma, and Ukum LGAs.
Governance and Corruption: The Rot Within
Corruption has been identified as a major obstacle to progress, weakening governance, fuelling illegality, and fostering impunity. The defunct Benue State Examinations Board became "synonymous with corruption, inefficiency, and lost confidence". The Benue State House of Assembly is now moving to establish an Anti-Corruption Commission, but restoring public trust will take years.
Founding Chairman of the Benue State Council for Arts and Culture, Iyorwuese Hagher, reflecting on the state's 50-year journey, lamented: "At 50, there is little to celebrate. The Founding Fathers have been betrayed". He spoke of "a slow erosion of institutional memory, a persistent recycling of empty promises, and a political culture detached from the people's realities".
The Road Ahead: What Must Be Done
1. Security: A National Problem Requires a National Solution
The farmer-herder conflict cannot be resolved by Benue alone. The anti-open grazing law must be domesticated nationally, backed by federal armed security agencies empowered to enforce it across state boundaries. The federal government must deploy more troops to protect farming communities and border areas. Security analysts urge authorities to move beyond reactive deployments and instead reform land governance, strengthen rural policing, disrupt illicit funding networks, and establish inclusive peace committees.
Former Head of State General Yakubu Gowon, speaking at Benue's golden jubilee, called on leaders across ethnic and political divides to promote fairness, inclusiveness and mutual respect, stressing that "enduring peace can only be achieved through dialogue and collective commitment".
2. Agriculture: From Production to Processing
Benue must move beyond its identity as the "Food Basket" by developing agro-processing, manufacturing, and value addition. The Benue Food City Complex in Ogyoma, Otukpo LGA, valued at $250 million, represents the first public-private partnership project in Benue's nearly 50-year history and will process at least 50,000 metric tons of soybean annually. Governor Alia has pledged to double soybean output from 202,000 to at least 400,000 metric tons in three years. Similar investments in citrus processing, cassava, and other crops must follow.
3. Industrialisation: Unlocking Mineral Wealth
Benue's 45 identified solid mineral deposits represent a pathway to economic diversification. The state must create an enabling environment for responsible investment that supports value addition, industrialisation, job creation, and wealth retention. Illegal mining must be curtailed, and legal mining operations must be structured to benefit local communities.
4. Human Capital: Education and Health as Priorities
The 2025 budget allocates 15 percent to education and 15 percent to health. These investments must be sustained and scaled. The state must shift from purely theoretical education to practical business training. Governor Alia has already awarded scholarships to children of fallen heroes and empowered their widows with businesses. Such initiatives must be expanded.
5. Diaspora Engagement: Leveraging Benue's Global Network
Governor Alia has called on Benue indigenes in the diaspora to contribute through investments, technology transfer, mentorship, and strategic partnerships. The state's rich human resources — including former Senate President David Mark, SGF George Akume, and numerous professionals worldwide — represent an asset that has been underutilised.
6. IDP Welfare: Durable Solutions, Not Camps
More than half a million Benue residents remain displaced. The state government has reaffirmed its commitment to alleviating the suffering of displaced persons through food and non-food items to 15 official IDP camps. But camps are not solutions. The government must prioritise the safe return of displaced communities to their ancestral homes, as demonstrated by the 80 families who have already returned to Makurdi.
7. Fiscal Sustainability: Reducing Reliance on Federal Allocations
Governor Alia has reiterated his commitment to building a productive economy that relies less on federal allocations. The growth in IGR from under N10 billion to over N20 billion, and the target of N30 billion in 2025 is encouraging. But much more is needed. The domestication of the Start-up Law and the establishment of a Business Fund to support SMEs are critical steps.
Conclusion: The Next 50 Years
Governor Alia, speaking at the golden jubilee celebration, captured the stakes: "The first 50 years gave us our identity. The next fifty must deliver unprecedented prosperity".
Former Head of State General Yakubu Gowon expressed hope that "Benue at 50 marks a new beginning" a moment anchored on unity, fairness, and sustainable development.
But hope alone is not enough. The next 50 years will be defined not by speeches or ceremonies, but by whether Benue can finally secure its people, unlock its vast potential, and build the institutions that have eluded it for five decades.
The Benue spirit, as the governor noted, "remains unbroken". The question is whether leadership at both state and federal levels, will match that spirit with the resolve, resources, and reforms that the people of Benue deserve.
By Simon Augustine | News Desk
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