Structured Agro Real Estate Positioned as Competitive Alternative to Commercial Real Estate at AAREDS 2026
This is a sponsored post. At the African Agro Real Estate Development Summit (AAREDS) 2026, industry leaders converged around a central conclusion: structured agro real estate is emerging as a competitive alternative to traditional commercial real estate. Discussions highlighted how investments in oil palm, coconut, cocoa plantations, and other cash crops can deliver long-term yield performance, profitable returns, and asset appreciation that rival, and in some emerging markets exceed, those of commercial real estate.
From High-Risk Farming to Structured Asset Class
Historically, large-scale agriculture struggled to attract serious capital due to inappropriate financing models and weak governance. Abubakar Lawal, the group managing director of GTI, emphasized that traditional bank lending does not align with agriculture's long-term timelines and volatility, often leaving projects underfunded. Assetrise Limited is redesigning agricultural investment by introducing structured funding frameworks, transparent governance systems, scalable project design, and reduced investment friction, with ambitions for capital market participation.
Special Purpose Vehicle for Profitable Oil Palm Plantation in Africa
During the summit, the Group Managing Director of Assetrise Limited provided insight into the Palmrich model, a structured oil palm agro real estate framework. He explained that Palmrich eliminates traditional opacity by integrating land documentation, plantation management standards, and governance oversight. The launch of Palmrich Phase 9, structured with a Certificate of Occupancy (C of O), reinforces formal land title security to deepen trust among investors.
Governance: The Missing Link in Agro Real Estate Structure
Former SEC Director-General Mary Uduk reinforced that agriculture must be treated as a regulated investment ecosystem, not just a production activity. She identified full disclosure, accountability, and enforcement as non-negotiables for investor confidence. Without regulatory clarity, agriculture becomes speculative, leading to capital retreat and trust collapse. AAREDS positioned structured agro real estate as a governance-backed framework designed to close these gaps.
Traditional Institutions as Investment Stabilizers
The representative of Oba Olufolarin Olukayode Ogunsanwo, THE ALARA OF ILARA, underscored the role of traditional authorities as custodians of land heritage, mediators of disputes, enablers of secure land access, and protectors of community stability. Structured agro real estate integrates community trust into the investment architecture to mitigate operational risks and social friction.
Infrastructure: Making Agriculture Investable
During the first panel session, Lagos State commissioner for agriculture and food systems, Hon Abisola Olusanya, and Engr Leye Akinola, Hon Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Systems, Ondo, outlined how states are shifting to infrastructure-driven food systems. Under the administration of Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu, Lagos is developing large-scale food logistics hubs, cold-chain infrastructure, storage systems, and structured off-taker frameworks to reduce waste, stabilize prices, and improve predictability for investment-grade agriculture.
Research, Regulation and Replication: The Institutional Backbone
The second panel session demonstrated how universities, research institutes, financial institutions, and regulators are aligning to transform agro real estate into a structured asset class. The Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB) controls over 10,200 hectares of mapped agricultural land and partners with Assetrise to test structured models, introducing smart agriculture innovation systems and mapping agricultural suitability to reduce crop mismatch risk.
NIFOR and CRIN: Enhancing Yield and Durability
The Nigerian Institute for Oil Palm Research (NIFOR) emphasized that locally adapted planting materials reduce production volatility compared to foreign varieties. The Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN) highlighted high-performance cocoa varieties, including an 18-month cocoa that shortens time-to-yield, with plantations preserving land value for 80 to 100 years when properly managed.
BRG and LASCORDA: Combating Fraud and Supporting Value Chains
The President of BRG addressed fraud in agro land banking by introducing government-aligned land documentation, proper titling processes, escrow-backed transactions, and structured governance. The Lagos State Coconut Development Authority (LASCORDA) reinforced state-backed production support, distributing subsidized seedlings to farmers and emphasizing structured value-chain integration.
Why Corporate Organizations and Cooperatives Are Paying Attention
For corporate organizations and cooperatives, structured agro real estate offers recurring biological yield, commodity exposure, land-backed asset growth, regulatory-aligned investment models, and community-backed land security. Unlike speculative farmland sales, it integrates policy, research, governance, infrastructure, and institutional finance. The Assetrise Limited and BRG consortium recently announced a 1,000-acre structured agro real estate project, praised for establishing a safe, transparent investment framework.
The Assetrise Positioning and Bigger Signal
Throughout the summit, Assetrise Limited was presented as a model for structured, transparent, compliant, and scalable agricultural land development. By integrating land, governance, research-backed inputs, and institutional financing alignment, Assetrise positions agro real estate as a legitimate asset class. AAREDS 2026 argued that structured agro real estate, when properly governed, deserves to sit alongside commercial real estate as a serious capital allocation strategy. The question is no longer viability but correct structure.
Corporate organizations, cooperatives, and institutional stakeholders seeking structured agro real estate participation can engage directly with Assetrise to explore compliant, scalable investment frameworks aligned with AAREDS standards. Structured capital requires a structured entry.
