Kebbi’s rice pyramids give state enviable status in agric revolution

Sometime in 2015, Kebbi state governor, Alhaji Atiku Bagudu, met with the state chapter of the Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN), under the leadership of Alhaji Mohammed Sahabi Augie to find out how farmers in the state were faring and how the government could come to their aid.

Narrating what took place at the time, the RIFAN chairman said: “When the state governor, Alhaji Atiku Bagudu, came on board, he summoned us for a meeting in order to know how we were doing and what were our challenges.

“We told him funds and technical knowledge were the two most important things we were lacking, and that if we got the necessary support, the sky would be our limit. The governor then promised to support us. Later, he fixed a meeting between our chapter and all the other state chapters in the country.”

The meeting was held at the Kebbi lodge in Abuja and what the governor was told was not different from what he was told in Kebbi. After the meeting, Bagudu met with President Muhammadu Buhari.

It was gathered that the President directed the Central Bank to assist the rice farmers with funds to enable them to improve their farming activities.

Also, the president was quoted as saying: “We cannot have the farmers and the land and continue to depend on importation, spending large foreign exchange.”

Prior to 2015, it was gathered that 70 percent of the rice consumed in the country came from Thailand and other Asian countries.

Thus, in 2015, the Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP) was launched by Buhari in Birnin Kebbi, the Kebbi state capital, on 17th November.

Thus, part of the mandate given to the CBN was to see the non-oil sector developed as a result of the oil crash that year.

Midwived by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the ABP is essentially aimed at assisting farmers to be self-sufficient in rice production and to end the continued dependence on foreign nations for rice supply.

Since its take-off in the state, the anchor borrowers’ scheme has been improving the livelihoods of farmers.

According to the commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources,  Alhaji Maigari Abdullahi Dakingari, “in Kebbi, we don’t have security challenges like other northern states. Here, our farmers go to their farms without fear of being attacked by bandits or kidnappers.”

Dakingari’s view was also corroborated by the Commissioner for Information, Barrister Rakiya Tanko Ayuba, who stated that the governor is security conscious. She said on matters of security, he will not spare a minute before he takes action.

According to her, this has given the state the leverage to concentrate on rice production, compared to other states which have security challenges.

Another factor is that traditionally, the state is a rice-producing state. A beneficiary of the anchor borrowers scheme who is also a big time farmer, Abdullahi Saidu Argungu, said “rice is gold” in Kebbi state.

He said: “Majority of the people here are farmers. We inherited our farms from our great grandparents. In those years, we farmed only rice. Everywhere you go it’s rice, rice. No other things like maize, guinea corn, etc. So, when this scheme was introduced, we readily accepted it with our two hands.”

Argungu also added that many farmers didn’t have much issues with understanding the technology, adding that “we produce rice more than what we used to produce before now.”

He continued: “Look here (pointing at people working on the farms). There are over 100 people who come here everyday to earn a living. Women, young girls and boys, many of our youths have improved their livelihoods. They are now comfortable,” the farmer added.

Argungu, who owns a 350-hectare rice farm, noted the ABP has assisted thousands of farmers.

He said: “Before this time, we produced only one to two tonnes per hectare, but now we produce 7 to 8 tonnes per hectare. Someone told me he produced up to 10 tonnes per hectare. We want to see how we can produce 20 tonnes per hectare.”

He said at the moment, because of the success of the programme, about 300,000 rice farmers have benefitted from the scheme.

He added: “No state in the country has this figure. Today, we are being ranked as the number one in rice production in the country. We produce thousands of tonnes of rice. It was for this reason that the National Rice Festival was organised in the state.”

Unveiling the rice pyramid

Elaborating further, the RIFAN chairman highlighted the successes recorded in the state through rice farming, evident in the showcase at the National Rice Festival.

He said: “We thought five years is enough to examine ourselves to see how we have gone in the rice revolution. So, we decided to organise a National Rice festival as well as to showcase the rice pyramid and launch the dry farming season. It was three programmes imbedded into one.

“We arranged the bags into 20,000 to 30,000 bags that made up the rice pyramids that were unveiled to the public.

“The paddy rice was essentially brought from our farmers and a few others from our neighbours. The idea is to tell the world what we have achieved in just five years.”

Speaking during the unveiling of the pyramids held at Zauro town, located a few kilometres from Birnin Kebbi, Atiku Bagudu, who expressed satisfaction with the performance, told the gathering that the unveiling of the pyramid has shown the world the successes and gains of the last five years of ABP.

“This is a great testament to the happy journey so far in spite of the devastating effects of the global coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on the economy, flood disasters, and other issues.

“Our hardworking populace has been supported by the good economic policies by President Muhammadu Buhari, institutions such as the CBN, other agencies and other commercial banks.

“Nigerians have been resilient at work; hence, we are celebrating these achievements recorded in the last five years. The last five years have given us great hope that agriculture will continue to produce the desired results.

“This was a great feat under President Muhammadu Buhari. With the right support and policies, Nigerian farmers can favourably compete with their colleagues from across the world,” Bagudu said.

Also speaking at the event, the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, said he was happy to celebrate the gains of the programme, saying, “Kebbi has been an integral part of the ABP.”

He noted that a total of 2,923,937 farmers, cultivating 3,647,643 hectares across 21 commodities through 23 participating financial institutions have been financed in the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

“The Northwest zone cultivated 120,218 hectares and represented 38.5 percent in total number of farmers and 54.3 percent in total number of hectares financed.

“The massive pyramids launched in Kebbi were harvest from various fields across Kebbi State and a confirmation of the positive outlook of the ABP,” Emefiele said.

He said the country is blessed to meet its food requirements and had no reason to continually repeat the mistakes of the past as it relates to neglecting agricultural opportunities.

He expressed delight that Kebbi State has earned for itself a new name, as the cradle of ABP in Nigeria, adding that President Buhari is desirous of sustaining the tempo.

Challenges of rice farmers

In spite of the successes recorded, findings by the Nigerian Tribune revealed that much has to be done if the country wants to have enough rice for local supply and for export.

Some of the small farmers interviewed believe that if fertilizer is substantially subsidised, many of them will smile to the banks.

A small farmer, Sani Argungu, who said he has a one-hectare rice farm which he inherited from his father, lamented that the cost of fertilizer has made it difficult for farmers to produce to feed or even sell in order to meet the day-to-day demands.

According to him, many farmers have abandoned farming because they cannot afford to buy fertilizer. He disclosed that it is not only expensive, but also sometimes not available.

Also speaking in the same vein, another farmer said the cost of petrol is worrisome. He said petrol is not sold at the official price of N162 but N200 per litre, noting that for an average farmer, buying petrol to pump water from the source is expensive.

“This morning, I had to buy a gallon of petrol for N1,000 to pump water from the source,” the farmer said.

Argungu also argued that agriculture must be subsidised if there will be enough to feed the nation and tackle food insecurity.

On his part, the RIFAN chairman said fertilizer, insecticides, pesticides, petrol, should be made available and affordable to farmers, irrespective of their positions.

According to him, these are the major challenges of most rice farmers, as the cost of generating sets is very high.

In addition, he suggested that accessible roads be constructed in order to make the products available in the markets.

A small scale rice miller, Attahiru Maccido, disclosed that many rice millers like him find it difficult to access loans from the banks in order to improve their businesses.

According to him, “if you approach any bank for loan, you have to show them that you have a property in Abuja before they will grant you the loan. They don’t accept any property as collateral if it is in Birnin Kebbi. This is the major problem.”

He called for a review of such banking policies, and urged the government to assist the millers.

A Kebbi-based rice miller, who pleaded for anonymity, identified the major challenge in the factory is electricity. According to him, his milling company spends a lot on diesel to remain in business. He also said sourcing for foreign exchange is another headache.

“Many millers wanted to come in but foreign exchange issue is the major hindrance,” he added.

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