It is no strange news that the cost of items have increased sporadically in Nigeria and a number of people have not been able to fathom the reasons behind it. Producers, farmers, foodstuff sellers and an agriculturalist speak with Saturday Tribune on reasons for the high costs and the solutions.
Herdsmen/insecurity and closed border factor
Mrs Nike Akinboyegun is the director of Nikky Nikky Ventures in Ibadan, Oyo State. She said, “Everything is on a high side and the fluctuation is not even encouraging; from palm oil to beans, rice, noodles, pasta, tomato paste and even garri. Garri is now between N600 – N800 naira per bucket. People now mix groundnut oil and do several cheats to make profits like they used to. We will pay for generator, fuel, shop, it is now hard to sell things to people in small quantity with nylons.
“I will suggest that we even open the border or allow people do exportation and importation with ease. Cassava is not easy to harvest because farmers have been chased off their farms, affecting the cost of garri. There is hunger. Even we that are selling goods, we should try to bring it down from the wholesale point. Let us help ourselves. The difference between the cost price and selling price for some people is too much, some are too selfish about their profits. 1000 naira investment in pepper and tomatoes cannot go a long way in feeding a family of five
“Farmers have been chased off the farmlands” – Adediran
Mr Ayodele Adediran who owns a farmland in Ido Ekiti, Ekiti State said he knows the effect of the herdsmen on farming and the farmland in the country.
“I am a testifier to this cause because what I experienced last year regarding this was not good enough. I spent over N150,000 on farming and got nothing because cows destroyed my farmland which is a major problem that has made things expensive.
“The rain pattern was also erratic, as a maize and yam farmer, it was very tedious; the crops, including cocoyam, didn’t come out at the right time. There are some farmers that have hectares of land for just cocoyam and they realised nothing. The non-availability of funds for people to farm is also a problem; it is just people who can take risks that are doing the farming. I know the government has said they have given financial support to farmers but the truth is the money is not even really getting to the practising farmers, the money goes to those in the office; practising office farming and do not even a farmland to tender to. If the money can get to direct farmers, it would have been better.
The bad roads are a challenge too…
Adediran also said that: “There is also no good road network, most farmers alike find it difficult to transport their produces because of the road challenges we have here in Nigeria. It takes more fuel to move on bad roads and they have to send the produces to markets, it will bounce on people selling the foodstuff as retailers or wholesalers. That is why things are really expensive in the market because of all these factors. The herdsman still affects people on the farm land and I think the government should do better. Some have the money to farm, so, we have savings and still have farmlands but there is fear to go on to the farms to avoid being killed by herdsman. Someone like me, I have been away from the farm because of this reason, I know the southwest governors are doing their best to control and abort open grazing, but I wish there could be a rapid approach to solving this problem. It is minimised than before and they still need to do more.
The fuel–hike, low rain factor
Taiwo Boluwade, Manager of Obamba Farm International with farmlands situated both in Ekiti and Ogun states also spoke about the way herdsman activities have disrupted activities on farmlands.
“Things are so expensive and farmers are running away from the farm and those that are willing to go are not encouraged enough to want to go to the farms. The Nigerian government too is causing a lot of problems because of the cost of fuel. The transport and every other thing have added to the problems. Then the other one has to do with rain because weather has changed when rain is supposed to fall, it is not. To plant, to purchase what you want to even plant, to transport things is a big challenge, these are the major reasons why it is hard to produce.
A transporter who preferred anonymity said: “I can tell you that we are not to blame for the high cost of movement of goods intra or interstate. It is not exactly dollar rate that is affecting us but trust me, the amount of money we spend on maintenance and spare parts is a lot. If you visit the market today and visit in three days time, you will not get the product for the same price, we have to buy spare parts, buy fuel and that is why we have increased the rate. We hope the government can regulate things”.
“There is market unrest, fear and hunger in the land” – Dr Omilusi
Dr. Idowu Omilusi, an academician who also doubles as a wholesaler of foodstuff in Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State, said the way things are expensive has been making her customers fearful and efforts being put into getting goods to town has made it that way.
“People are smuggling rice into the country, some have to bribe to get rice from the border and that is why it also expensive. Beans and palm oil is on a high side. I do not know why beans and palm oil are expensive, before as early as this year, palm oil was N6000 naira per keg but I can tell you right now that it sells for about 12,000 naira, it is not coming down because those who are selling also believe that other products and foodstuff are not going down so why should palm oil or beans go down, maybe the northerners don’t want to send beans down to south west.
“There is inflation everywhere and no rest of mind because going to the market is coupled with worries on whether your budget can fit in.”
National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has shown that food inflation in Nigeria rose by 22.95 percent in March 2021, an increase at a faster pace when compared to 21.70 percent filed in February 2021.
We have to start looking for alternatives in Nigerian agricultural front – Dr. Ibitoye
Dr Rachael Ibitoye who is a retiree from the National Open University said there are natural causes and scientific reasons behind what we are experiencing now and it has to be attacked by improvisations.
“The ozone layer depletion is a general problem the world is facing now. For rainfall, anything can happen because of that depletion and rain is a natural gift which is when the sun evaporates water to from cloud and then water and when the heat is too much, it goes higher up there. Scientifically it is a global problem and yes nobody can stay on rain alone to do farming work.
“Being in the developed countries for my doctorate degree exposed me to see that we have a long way to go on our agricultural terrain. In Eastern Europe and other western countries, they have just three months of rainfall and they are growing their crops well. Even if they import lot of products, I was impressed with their green house farming of gigantic structure with pipes and working irrigation system for planting vegetables and tomatoes. Each local government in Nigeria should have green house farming plans and allow stream flow there. Tomatoes are expensive now and other food crops. We have to find a way to work around our production; we need a working irrigation system.
“There are no ways you will find animals roaming the streets abroad; the government has a lot of roles to play concerning herdsmen and the security threat that their activities pose. Even in Abuja, we have a farm and invested so much, we went after some days only to find the whole place turned upside down by cows; it was a wasted investment.
“We also need a regulation; we don’t have organised marketing in Nigeria which is not so favourable. If rice in Lagos State is a particular amount, it should be same in Kwara. We need to be faithful and more honest to ourselves. The farmers sweating day and night are not even getting the best; chemicals don’t get to them on time, they go to the market, it is expensive to buy what they need.”
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