Farmers in Nigeria are bedeviled with challenges that are threatening food production. A report in the Nigerian Tribune on June 23 showed how insecurity has displaced farmers from their farmlands.
According to the national president of Cocoa and Plantain Farmers Association of Nigeria, Mr Ayodele Ojo, insecurity is not only the first problem farmers are facing. Second is poor funding, many farmers cannot access soft loans to get fertilizers and equipments at subsidized rates. Third is the poor state of the roads. This makes it difficult to move their farm produce to the markets. Lastly, farmers/herder clashes is prevalent. When farms are attacked or invaded by herdsmen, farmers lose everything.
To boost food security, the government needs to look at several ways to protect farmers. One is the support of local security. Trained vigilante groups can help if supported to collaborate with the police. Farmers will feel safe when they see people from their own area protecting them. Technology can also help. Drones, cameras and simple alert systems in farming communities will let security forces more swiftly when there is danger and help respond faster.
As regards funding, government and banks should give farmers soft loans. Government should build and repair access roads to farms to ease movement of food and security officers when the need arises. For crop destruction, the government should restrict the movement of herdsmen from local farms, they can provide for grazing ranch.
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The government should also work with the suggestions of CPFAN on how to work with local chiefs and farmer groups. These people know their areas and can help forestall crime.
If these challenges are solved, farmers will return to their farms, high prices of food will be eliminated, food production will be strengthened and Nigerians will live a better life.
Mercy Ayankunle is a student of the Department of Mass Communication of the University of Ilorin.
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