The fact that a large proportion of Nigeria’s rural population depends on subsistence agriculture for survival is no news.
But what is news and of great concern is the fact that 48 years after independence, the nation is still grappling with the challenges of food security.
This is evident in the fact that the nation spends huge sums in foreign exchange annually on the importation of food.
The matter is much more worrisome when viewed against the background of the fact that there are 18 agriculture research institutes, three universities of agriculture and 40 faculties of agriculture at state and federal universities.
There are also eight faculties of veterinary medicine in Nigerian universities.
The Executive Secretary, Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria (ARCN), Prof. Yahaya Abubakar, says the nation also has the National Agricultural Research System (NARS).
He says that the NARS collaborates with the various colleges of agriculture to generate
and disseminate relevant and useful technologies, and train appropriate manpower for agriculture and rural development in the country.
Abubakar observes that the Nigerian agriculture sector is traditionally expected to fulfil such roles as providing food for the population, generate foreign exchange and provide employment. For him, the role of agriculture is to induce technical change as an essential instrument for long-term economic development of the country. Regrettably, he says, the sector has under-performed.
Abubakar acknowledges that after 48 years of independence, ‘’Nigeria is still battling with an agricultural sector that is characterised by food shortages and inconsistent policies.
“Nigeria has continued to import large quantities of rice, wheat, sugar, etc,
while crop yields has remained low,’’ he said. Analysts, however, wonder why the poor performance of the agriculture sector in spite of the huge investments.
Speakingin the same vein, the Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission (NUC), Prof. Julius Okojie, notes that agricultural practice in Nigeria has deteriorated
drastically in the past 30 years.
“The country has transited from a food sufficient economy to a food deficit economy, dangerously dependent on food imports for the welfare of its citizens,’’ Okojie pointed out.
He recalls that at the dawn of independence, agriculture served as the mainstay or the driving force of the nation’s economy.
Okojie recalls that agriculture also provided employment for about 80 per cent of the nation’s population, while Nigeria enjoyedsome level of self-sufficiency in food production and was a major producer and exporter of various agricultural products. ‘’Consequently, agricultural activities for a long time constituted the main source of the country’s exchange earnings,’’ Okojie stressed. After a cursory look at developments in the sector since 1960, the executive secretary says it is obvious that the sector has performed woefully.
According to him, the situation is such that even though ‘’Nigeria is predominantly agrarian, yet less food on the average is produced when compared to other countries of the world’’.
He agrees that although some funds were sunk in food production in the country, there were huge food deficits, due mainly to the fact that subsistence agriculture is still being practiced.
‘’This is characterised by obsolete production systems and techniques, seasonal production, leading to annual cycles of abundance and scarcity which further impoverished the people living in rural areas.
“Inefficient distribution networks, high losses, before, during and after harvest, as well as poor yields are also cases in point,’’ he noted. But which way forward for Nigeria’s agriculture, and how can the sector be revived?
For Abubakar, the challenge before the country now is to develop a well articulated research system to meet national objectives for the sector.
Okojie, however, counsels that for Nigeria to occupy a pride of place as an effective agricultural economy, it needs to make fundamental changes requiring a total review
of the concepts and practices in the agricultural sector.
He posits that the agricultural sector has suffered from decades of neglect and that current efforts at resuscitating the sector need to be improved and sustained to ensure effective transformation of the rural economy which, he notes, is key to an enduring democracy in the country.
An agricultural expert, Dr Anthony Ekanem, advised the country to take a cue from Malaysia and other countries that revolutionised their agriculture.
‘’Malaysia came to Nigeria in the early 70s to obtain palm seedlings from us which, today has become a major exporter of the product, while Nigeria is still groping in the dark,’’ he said.
Ekanem says that the country faces grave challenges, mostly that of eradication of poverty and fostering socio-economic development.
‘The current food crisis and the poverty level in the country could be overcome only
if government would encourage every Nigerian to embrace farming, articulate research findings and assist farmers through subsidies and loans,’’ he stated.
Ekanem emphasises that through agriculture, the rate of poverty will be radically reduced, if not eliminated.
He says this is premised on whether the government can also make agriculture an attractive and enticing occupation through appropriate price stabilisation policies and other incentives.
But Rev. Sam Inyang, Chairman,Cross River Chapter of All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), laments that government has not done enough to stimulate agricultural
activities and development in the country.
“The Federal Government’s budgetary provision to the agricultural sector is too low; at least government should increase it to 15 per cent,’’ he advised. Inyang explains that with increased budgetary allocation to agriculture, enough credit facilities and other incentives can be extended to farmers to boost farming activities and ensure an all year food production in the country.
He says that the looming global food crisis is a warning to Nigeria to look inward and accord agriculture a pride of place to stave off hunger among its citizens.
“The sudden sharp increase in the prices of staple food items is not a good thing for the common man in the country,’’ Inyang observed.
He suggests that recovered stolen funds from corrupt former and serving public office holders be injected into agriculture to ensure food security in the country.
Stakeholders in the sector say since the oil sector resources are not renewable, proceeds from the oil industry should be invested in the renewable agricultural resources.
This, they say, will ensure that when oil and gas resources are exhausted, Nigeria can
again depend on improved agricultural sector to sustain it and enhance stable democracy.
‘’Our hope is built on an improved agricultural sector that is capable of transforming the rural economy, improve our export earnings and fight poverty in a stable democracy,’’ the stakeholders noted.
The time, no doubt, is now to restore the lost glory of agriculture in Nigeria for the benefit of the present and future generations.
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