The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Farming

  • Of farming and absurd politics

    This is certainly an era of absurdities and pettiness in the evolutionary transmutation of Nigerian politics. It is a season of desperation. Fair is foul and foul is fair; everything goes. Cudgels, nails and sundry impediments are being hurled at the wheel all in a desperate effort to score cheap political points. Distortions, contraptions and lies have become the norm especially in a raging media altercation. Like bull in a Chinese shop, crafty media propagandists and other hirelings have been let loose using sweet phraseologies and idiomatic to befuddle the gullible public.

    In the macabre display, one of the biggest victims is the incumbent commander-in-chief and some of his frontline lieutenants. It is within this atmosphere that the recent missile hauled at President Goodluck Jonathan and the FCT Minister, Senator Bala Mohammed by eminent columnist, Sam Omatseye in The Nation newspaper edition of Monday March 2, 2015 could be contextualized.  Nothing can be more diversionary than the unnecessary argument about the propriety or otherwise of a public officer engaging in farming. It is a needless infantile exercise because the constitution is very explicit about it.

    The Fifth Schedule Part 1 Code of Conduct for Public Officers under the 1999 Constitution puts the matter beyond doubt. While Section 1 states that: “A public officer shall not put himself in a position where his personal interest conflicts with his duties and responsibilities,” Section 2 put the provision in proper perspective by stating that: “Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing paragraph….nothing in this sub-paragraph shall prevent a public officer from engaging in farming”.

    This provision clearly shows that it is firmly within the ambit of the law for public officers including the President to engage in farming. The 1999 Constitution, as amended, does not prohibit any Nigerian, including sitting public office holders, from acquiring landed property.

    Now, let me evaluate other postulations made by Omatseye in his opinion article. First, his conclusion that the land allocated to Ebele Farms Limited is meant for aviation purposes is both simplistic fallacious. Again, the ephemeral assertion by Omatseye that because the area is called aviation village all the land there had been set aside for aviation purposes is laughable. No, the cognomen is merely for descriptive reasons and does not connote ownership.

    Also, the attempt to paint the farm as bogus is surprising. In modern farming one person can farm in a piece of land as expansive as hundreds of hectares. Omatseye was apparently having a nostalgia of peasant farming in his community where each peasant uses primitive tools to farm in a couple of hectares.

    It is a statement of fact that one of the banes of the Nigerian experience is the tendency of many practitioners to take politics or governance as a full time career or a sole means of livelihood. Those who totally depend on politics for survival often end as liabilities rather than assets especially upon the end of their tenure, appointment or retirement from civil or public office. Thus the involvement of more public officers, including high profile leaders in farming will go a long way towards making them self-reliant and economically independent.

    The involvement of more people in meaningful farming activities therefore, remains a healthy development which will help to boost the Nigerian economy and contribute to the nation’s GDP and food sufficiency.

    As a zoologist, what is wrong if the President opts to deploy his immense knowledge in mechanized farming? Rather than vilify the President, he should be commended for boldly and sincerely taking step to contribute his quota towards our food security. Those who have been laboring through the media to incite the public against the President for doing what is simply and squarely lawful have not found any constitutional enactment that negates the explicit provision of Section 2, Fifth Schedule of the Code of Conduct for public officers in the 1999 constitution which states that “nothing in this sub-paragraph shall prevent a public officer from engaging in farming.”

    Again, we have witnessed several instances where leaders establish farmlands and other businesses in other countries such as Ghana, South Africa and East Africa. Some leaders also illegally stashed money in foreign banks while other buy choice houses in London, New York and other mega cities of the world while Nigeria continued to import basic need like rice, fish and meat.

    Do they want him to become a liability to the nation upon leaving office as President harassing his successor for handouts? Is it not a healthy development that rather than go to sleep after serving he would retire to mechanized farming? The advantages are numerous. Apart from contributing handsomely towards Nigeria’s food sufficiency, certainly offer gainful employments to hundreds our teeming youths and women.

    With the steady decline of oil as our main source of revenue earning, we need to diversify urgently and agriculture is one sector that can provide the urgently needed rescue. Moreover, increased participation of more influential public officers and other Nigerians in farming will help to create jobs for our teeming unemployed youths.

    Lastly, it is untrue to claim that the Minister of FCT, Senator Bala Mohammed allocated farmland to himself. That is not to say that he has no constitutional right to farm or own a farmland. The truth is that he is not a shareholder in Bird Trust Agro Allied Ltd as claimed by The Nations. It is therefore blatantly incorrect to accuse of abusing his office and violating the 1999 constitution.  This is not to say that he has no constitutional right to engage in farming if he so wishes.

    It is certainly not corruption for a public officer to engage in farming as stipulated in the Nigerian Constitution of 1999. We need more farmers if we must succeed in making Nigeria self-reliant in food production. No amount of twisting of facts cajolery, incitement or intimidation will force the Administration to abdicate its responsibilities. Thousands of Nigerians hold land titles for farming purposes in the FCT. With its 8,000 square kilometer size, FCT is larger than some states in terms of land mass. It is more than enough of the needless attempt to politicize farming by a section of the media and its patrons. It has become very obvious that most Nigerians are uninterested in such distractive debates.

     

    • Mr. Achiniru, a public affairs analysts wrote from Durumi, AMAC, Abuja.

  • ‘Biotechnology’ll boost farming, alleviate poverty’

    The use of modern biotechnology will boost farming and alleviate poverty among Nigerian farmers, National Chairman, All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Mr Karbir Umar, has said.

    Umar stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja while commending the Senate for the passage of a bill seeking to establish the National Bio-Safety Management Agency.

    Biotechnology is the use of modern scientific techniques, including genetic engineering to improve or modify plants, animals or micro organisms.

    The National Bio-Safety Management Agency will regulate the application of biotechnology in the country and ensure that it does not have negative effect on human health and the environment.

    Umar said when the technology is applied it would boost yields and increase income of farmers in the country. “This is a welcome development; it will take our farmers out of poverty and out of subsistence farming.

    “Biotech enhances the yields of seeds; with minimum input, it will produce the desired high quantity, which when sold will increase the income of farmers,” he said.

    The AFAN chairman said the association was partnering with local and international seeds companies to further increase seeds accessibility to farmers.

    He appealed to the Federal Government to open up more windows for financing and the possibilities of processing all agricultural produce in the country.

    The chairman acknowledged that the government was making efforts to fund agriculture through the N220 billion micro, medium and small enterprise fund.

    He urged farmers to key into various government programmes and vote wisely in the forthcoming general elections, saying that if there is peace and security in Nigeria, agriculture will replace oil.

  • Fed Govt okays N26b for dry season farming

    Fed Govt okays N26b for dry season farming

    President Goodluck Jonathan at the weekend announced the release of N26 billion by the Federal Government for this year’s dry season farming.

    Jonathan, who spoke at the 2015 Agrifest at the Eagle Square, Abuja, pledged the support of his administration to farmers.

    The president used the event to highlight his administration’s successes in agriculture.

    Nigeria, he said, would not be held hostage by rice importers, adding that the country is working to attain self-sufficiency in rice production.

    Jonathan said: “To further boost your efforts to produce more food for our nation, I am pleased to announce here today the release of N26 billion naira towards the 2015 Dry Season Farming Programme.

    “Nigeria, our dear country, will not be held hostage by rice importers. There will be no sacred cows under my watch. All those owing Nigeria on rice import duties must pay.”

    The president said the private sector have put over N45 billion private investment in new oil palm plantation.

    The investment, he said, would allow farmers to cultivate 70,000 hectares of new plantations to allow Nigeria to become self-sufficient in palm oil production by 2016.

    He said: “I am excited that today, Okomu, Presco, PZ – Wilmar and medium size oil palm estate operators such as Wilbahi are taking the lead in revamping our vast oil palm plantations.

    “We will continue to support the revamping of our oil palm industry and support the private sector to build new refineries to process crude palm oil produced in Nigeria.”

    Earlier, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, said government was supporting 27 Nagropreneur with N122 million take-off grant to do their business.

    The youths were given N5 million each under the Youth Empowerment in Agriculture Programme.

    The minister added that the ministry would work closely with all states government to ensure capacity-building for youths.

    Also, Minister of Finance and the Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, said most of the 1.2 million jobs created in 2014 were in the agriculture sector.

    Dr. Okonjo-Iweala explained that without agriculture, the nation would not make much progress.

    “Because of agriculture, inflation has reduced. We are showing that we can feed ourselves,” she said.

  • Dry season: Irrigation farming to the rescue

    Dry season: Irrigation farming to the rescue

    The dry season is usually a challenging period for farmers. With an average precipitation that is below 60 millimetres and lack of watering holes, farmers face many challenges in planting. But with the efforts of the Federal Government to address this problem, farmers may no longer be left dry when the weather gets harsh, DANIEL ESSIET reports.

    DRY-SEASON farming is not profitable for crops production. This is because there are no irrigation facilities in  most parts of the country.

    Some farmlands receive yearly rainfall of about 20 inches. Many farmlands in the North lhave become degraded. Areas that used to be covered by trees and homes have been deforested. Also, the climate is changing the outlook of farming.

    Farmers face unpredictable weather brought on by climate change. Sometimes the rainy season comes late; at other times, it ends early. Sometimes the rains come late and hard, causing floods. At other times, rains don’t come at all, causing drought. With these weather changes, it is difficult for farmers to plan which crops to grow, when to prepare land, when to plant, and how to plan other farming tasks. Worst hit are those from the North who have  to  respond to serious weather changes, making it difficult for them to farm during  dry  season, which runs from October to May. The weather during this period is much hotter and drier. For this reason, farmers adopt various agricultural practices to confront these differences in weather patterns.

    But the Federal Government has taken some steps to address the situation.

    Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, said the Federal Government has okayed the release of N14 billion for dry season farming.

    The funds underscores the importance government attaches to dry season farming.

    Director, Federal Ministry of Agriculture Alhaji Mohammed Yusuf, who spoke in Bauchi at a stakeholders meeting of the Growth Enhancement Support (GES) Scheme, said agricultural input would also be provided to farmers under the dry season farming programme.

    He said in Bauchi State alone, the Federal Government provided incentives to 10,000 dry season rice farmers.

    According to him, each farmer received three bags of fertiliser at 50 per cent discount and 25kg of improved rice seeds.

    Yusuf said more than 400,000 farmers from 19 participating states were being supported under the 2013/2014 dry season GES scheme.

    He said: “The effort produced more than one million tonnes of rice during last year’s dry season farming with just over 200,000 farmers drawn from 10 states.

    “We intend to double or even triple the production this year.

    “We have already carried out sensitisation campaign across the state, identified genuine farmers, enlightened them and assessed their level of preparedness in respect of land and source of water.

    “I am happy to inform you that our farmers are ready; they have prepared their lands in clusters and ready for planting. Very soon, we will commence distribution of the input.”

    The director advised farmers to utilise the input to expand their production capacity, adding that the problems of processing and marketing had been addressed through the value chain initiative.

    Director, Dams and Reservoir Operations, Federal Ministry of Water Resources, Dr Emmanuel Adanu, urged farmers to embrace irrigation farming, as it can deliver greater crop yield than rain-fed farming.

    He noted that irrigation farming was more productive because it was usually regulated and more focused than rain-fed farming.

    According to him, that is why people in the South are being encouraged to use the dams in their areas for irrigation.

    “We are encouraging people in the South now to go into irrigation farming even though  we don’t have a long period of dry season for them to do continuous irrigation.

    “So, we encourage them to go into some irrigation because the production from irrigation normally is better than rain-fed agriculture,” he said.

    Adanu said the North engaged in irrigation agriculture more because it has a longer period of dry season and abundant expanse of land than the South.

    The Manager, Asaba Area Office of Benin-Owena River Basin Development Authority, Mr Charles Ovweigho, said dry season rice farming would soon start at Illah, Delta State after the inauguration of Illah irrigation project.

    He said the N200 million project was for dry season rice farming.

    He explained that 100 hectares, out of the 200, earmarked for rice farming, was irrigated for dry season farming.

    “The contract for the irrigation was awarded in 2012 and the project will soon be inaugurated by the Minister of Agriculture,” he said.

    Ovweigho said the farm project extended to the neighbouring Ebu community, where 100 hectares of land was acquired, adding that 15 hectares had also been cleared in the community.

    He said interested large-scale farmers would be allowed to farm on the land after fulfilling some obligations.

    “This is a Federal Government project and it is all over the country; no restrictions or discrimination is placed on anybody,” adding that interests of host communities would be protected.

    Ovweigho said farmers on the land, only paid for the cost of land preparations, adding that when the irrigation system becomes operational the cost would also be subsidised.

    The government is said to have earmarked 230,000 hectares in 10 states under a pilot scheme to commence dry season farming.

    To  support  the  Federal Government, MARKETS II programme of the United States Agency  for International Development(USAID)  trained 2,229 lead farmers on best agronomic practices in dry season rice farming. Following the success of the 2013 pilot dry season rice programme that reached an initial 3,005 rice farmers in three states, MARKETS II continues to expand on the potential to improve farmers’ livelihoods and meet increasing demand for paddy.

    Last year, the dry season rice programme has been expanded to 10,000 rice farmers in Sokoto, Kebbi, Jigawa, Kano, and Niger states. The project conducted demonstrations on the use of a motorcycle-mounted water pumping device for irrigation and established 17 technology transfer centres (TTCs) in the northern states using fertiliser deep placement technology. The TTCs serve as learning sites for networked farmers.

    Stakeholders have urged the Federal Government to ensure early completion of  the various irrigation projects spread across the country to ensure the success of the dry season farming programme, food security and prosperity for farmers.

    The challenge, however, is that farmer-driven investment in small-scale irrigation is spreading without much government’s support in creating an enabling environment where farmers have information on the various systems, financial services to help them invest, and market access to sell produce.

    Another constraint is the lack of detailed hydro-geological mapping for the nation as a whole. This is because successful rainwater harvesting in on-farm ponds can depend on soil type and rainfall patterns, and works best on moderately sloping land.

    Finding a way to do mapping with some economies of scale and making the information public or available to smallholders would change the landscape and economics entirely.

    One of those affected is Mallam Kabiru Musa. Sometimes, when he has to do some work in the farm, he leaves his home early and work before the sun becomes scorching. He has to plough the land to grow millets and to control weeds.  But in  recent years,  climate  change  has made  his pre-planting activities challenging. This is because it makes rains more unpredictable.

    The farmlands get more  degraded. The fertility of soil decreases thus posing threats to agricultural production and resulting in lower crop yields and endangering the livelihoods of smallholder farmers.

    Where they  have to apply input and use improved seeds to get high yields, there is  shortage of water, attributed  to the changing climate. Sometimes the rains stop or it does not rain during the season. Musa is worried about the increasingly harsh weather as  the   rainy season is becoming short and  some    of his  crops   need three months rainy season to  grow  to harvest.

    It is not in the North alone that farmers face dry season challenges. Farmers in the Southwest are  also  confronted by challenges farming during the dry season.

    Programme Corodinator, Farmers Development Union (FADU), Mr Victor Olowe, said it is difficult for  farmers to grow okro and  other  vegetables that need much moisture.

    According  to him,  farming is becoming more challenging yearly with changes brought  by hotter temperature.

    Not only is it difficult to make decisions about what to grow, but yields have dropped. Climate change also is interacting with other pressures on the land, such as deforestation and environmental degradation, to reduce farmers’ ability to cope.

    To this  end, the farmers have had to work  with extension to advocate practices such as using input, planting trees, using drought-resistant crops, early-maturing crops, diversification into other activities to adapt to the changing climate.

    Generally, he explained that the changing climate is shifting weather patterns, reflecting  in increasing  number of hot days.

    He said the government can help  to cushion  the impact by supporting smallholder irrigation to improve productivity and incomes. This will also involve encouraging farmers to embrace  irrigation systems, such as pumps and on-farm ponds, freeing them from rain dependence to grow crops year-round, and to grow more high-value crops. In response, farmers are trying many things. They are growing new crops, trying drought-tolerant varieties, and changing other farm practices.

    Publisher, Agro Nigeria, Mr Richard Mbaram, said  he had witnessed a lot of efforts by the government to offer solutions to challenges faced by small farmers on drylands.

    According to him, Dr. Adesina has articulated his passion and commitment to smallholder agriculture, and a strong desire to improve the lives of millions of impoverished smallholder farmers and their families living in the drylands of the country.

    Mbaram said the Federal Government’s intervention policy on rice has boosted rice production.

    He acknowledged the  attestations of the governors of Kebbi and Kogi states, and the billions of naira invested by the private investor-driven interest groups, saying they were an endorsement of the government’s policy by the private and public sector.

  • ‘Embrace farming for food sufficiency, revenue’

    With the advancement in technology and changes in user behaviour, hotel industry dynamics are also changing.  Many customers pre-book their trip online rather than going to a certified travel agent. This has influenced an exponential growth in the hospitality industry, especially as consumers have become ‘smarter’ with smart devices. Now, entreprenuers are leveraging on technology for better efficiency and higher returns, DANIEL ESSIET reports.

    Young Nigerians do not want to dirty their hands anymore, and it just shocks me.

    “Now if the average Nigerian spends N100 ($0.6) per meal, and we are a population of 170 million people, my question to you is this: why have we neglected an industry that has the potential of generating N51billion ($300million) on a daily basis? Those are numbers you should begin to think about.”

    These were the posers to Nigerian youths by Cynthia Mosunmola Umoru, an entreprenuer who has spent the last 10 years building her career in agriculture.

    She started Honeysuckles PTL Ventures straight out of college, and today the business is engaged in farming, food processing and distribution. The company runs its flagship retail outlet “Farm shopper” in Ikeja, Lagos, offering a wide range of farm produce, including poultry products, eggs, snails, catfish and vegetables.

    At a recent TEDxIfe event in Nigeria, Umoru told the audience that country’s agricultural sector has been severely neglected.

    She said:“Today Nigeria is the current dumping ground for food produce from all over the world. We have grown a palate for food we don’t produce. We have developed a lifestyle we can’t sustain… We bring in tomatoes from Chad. We bring in beans from Burkina Faso,”she said.

    “We spend over N200billion ($1.1billion) importing rice on an annual basis in Nigeria… and only in Nigeria will people prefer strawberry over mango and watermelon that is locally grown. A kilo of strawberries costs an average of N4,500 – somebody’s salary for a whole week.”

    She said that it is up to young people to revolutionise agriculture in Nigeria and solve its problems.

    “We did a survey and realised the average age of our farmers today is 55 to 60. This means in another 10 years these guys will age and not be able to work. What is going to happen to food production? We have left that sector; we have ignored it completely. It’s about time we begin to think of a revolution in [agriculture] and begin to effect change.

    “And you and I are the people who will effect that change, and the time to act is now,” she said, adding that food production is where the money is.

    Cynthia noted young people often aspire to be doctors and lawyers rather than farmers because they see agriculture as less glamorous, and do not think they can accumulate wealth. However, she emphasised entrepreneurs can be successful in farming, and that she is living proof of this.

    But it has not always been easy sailing for her, and success has come after learning some hard lessons. For example, after the first five years of running her company, and at just age 27, she was bankrupt.

    The 27-year-old lady had lost $150,000. “I had gone bankrupt, and interest was still piling up on some of the funds I’d borrowed from the bank. And then people said I was a failure,” she recalled.

    However, within three years, she had managed to turn the business around and owes this to persistence, hard work, and learning from mistakes. “It has been 10 years of hard work, 10 years of discipline, 10 years of learning and 10 years of preparation,”  she said.

    In spite of her success, she is surprised that not many young people want to enter into farming and agribusiness, adding the sector holds so much potential as everyone needs to eat.

    “Now if the average Nigerian spends N100 ($0.6) per meal, and we are a population of 170million people, my question to you is: Why have we neglected an industry that has the potential of generating N51billion ($300million) on a daily basis? These are numbers you should begin to think about,” she said, adding that opportunities abound across the entire supply and value chain.

    “Nigeria currently sits on over 85 million square hectares of arable land. Guess what, we have barely cultivated 40 per cent of that land mass. It means the potential for engagement is still huge,” said Cynthia.

    However, outside of crop cultivation, she added that there are also other opportunities young entrepreneurs and university graduates should look into, such as distribution and food processing.

    One opportunity is in agricultural machinery and equipment supply. For example, she noted that a minimum of between 50 and 60 tractors are usually needed for every 1,000 hectares of farmland. But in Nigeria there are only about two per 1,000 hectares.

    “So opportunities across the value chain in that sector are so enormous. As young Nigerians it’s time for us to begin to think ‘out of the box’ and see how we can strategically position ourselves across the agricultural value chain.”

    •Culled from www.howwemadeitinafrica.com

  • Govt eyes 800, 000 jobs from mechanised farming

    Govt eyes 800, 000 jobs from mechanised farming

    The Federal Government has said about 800, 000 jobs would be created through the implementation of full scale mechanised farming.

    The government also noted that 4,800,000 metric tons (mt) of food will be added to the existing 21, 000, 000 mt under the Growth Enhancement Support Scheme (GES).

    Also, additional 10,000,000 farmers will have access to mechanised farming equipment through the Agricultural Equipment Hiring Enterprise (AEHE), the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development explained in a statement yesterday.

    The government said the new mechanisation policy, which is a Public Private Partnership (PPP) will see the government providing 35 per cent of the finance while financial institutions will provide 35 per cent, Agro-machinery Vendors will provide 20 per cent while Service Providers Operator (SPOs) will make 10 per cent available.

    The statement explained that the short term projection of the scheme through the partnership is to make available a minimum of 6,000 units of tractors and power tillers each.

    It will also make available about 13,000 units of various harvest and post harvest equipment to set up a minimum of 1,200 AEHE to render Mechanization Support Services to farmers

    To drive this new scheme, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina said President Goodluck Jonathan through the ministry has approved N4.5billion to implement an intervention scheme to serve as a model for replication.

    He said the first phase of this intervention will make available 590 units of tractors, 500 power tillers, and various harvests and post harvest equipment to set up 118 AEHEs centres.

    “The on-going Mechanisation scheme will provide 1,230 units of tractors, 2000 power tillers and 3400 units of various harvest and post equipment such as rice reapers, grain threshers, cassava planters and harvesters, boom sprayer among several other equipment to set up 246 units of AEHEs in demand driven locations nationwide,” the minister said in the statement.

     

  • ‘Farming is key to solving youth unemployment’

    ABUAD founder Aare Afe Babalola speaks on how the institution is making its enterprise farm to get students to embrace agriculture.

    Why  did  you  establish  ABUAD Enterprise Farm?

    Let me tell you why I started ABUAD Commercial Farm. I believe that the mistake of the economy of this country is agriculture because Nigeria is blessed with all that it takes to produce all types of crops. You recall that Nigeria was once self sufficient in agriculture before independence and even up to 1966 when the first military coup broke. It was the discovery of oil that caused us what we have in Nigeria today.

    (cuts) And what has this led Nigeria to?

    Unemployment! There is so much unemployment in the country because there is palpable apathy for agriculture. I obtained approval from NUC (National Universities Commission) to start Agriculture alongside other disciplines like Law, Engineering, Banking, Accounting, etc. Unfortunately, while other courses were oversubscribed, nobody applied for Agriculture. Despite that, I did not lose hope because ABUAD was established mainly to change people’s attitude to functional education and where students will graduate as employers of labour. I therefore decided to embark on commercial agriculture the success of which I know would change the attitude of students and Nigerians towards agriculture.

    What is ABUAD doing to entrench the culture of agriculture in her students?

    We make it compulsory for our students to engage in one form of agricultural practice or the other. Therefore we embarked on fishery, hatchery and we sell fresh and dried fish. Not only that, we decided to have a feed mill so we don’t have to buy from outside and we also teach our students how to produce it. Then, we decided to engage in other areas of agriculture. First the annual crops like maize, cassava, and yam, which can provide food and cash within three to six months. Later we embarked on permanent crops like teak trees, moringa, orange trees, which of course will take many years before one can reap from it. At different stages, we have about one and a half million teak trees. We have over 500 orange trees and 1 million 200 mango trees.

    But don’t you think there is a need to consolidate on this?

    Yes! To add values to what we produce, we established factories to produce mango, mango juice, and plantain chips. In the case of moringa, you can harvest it within three to four months; hence we decided to build a moringa factory with over 500,000 trees.  We now have seven products from its derivatives. In order to preserve perishable fruits which is another problem in this country, we ordered for a protection house. When we found out that the heat in Nigeria is so much, then we decided to build a green house.

    To encourage students and make them realise that they can as well be comfortable in animal production, we embarked on production of turkey, guinea fowl, pigs, quail, mushroom and others. As from next year January, students must register in different clubs named after cash or food crops. We have the plantain club, fish club, moringa club and so on.  They can register in one or two of these clubs and get a certificate for it at the end of each year. ABUAD is of the strong view that we cannot continue to produce students that will continue to roam the streets about. One of my greatest fulfillments is that we now have students coming into ABUAD to study agriculture.

  • Precision farming: New opportunities for agriculture?

    Precision farming: New opportunities for agriculture?

    The search for new methods of boosting agricultural production to enable the country meet her aspiration of achieving food security has led to precision farming, a high tech approach to  managing soils and crops and ensuring the most efficient use of resources.  Some experts have however expressed doubts about the applicability of this farming method to small-scale agriculture in the country, DANIEL ESSIET  reports.

    Small scale growers in Northern Nigeria are dynamic farmers. They dream of better ways of growing their millet, maize and soya beans. Because of this, they are continually searching for new farm management techniques and are prepared to try out any innovation that seems viable. Yet, because prices locally are low, their incomes continue to fall and no one seems able to help them secure niche markets with high returns.

    This is because commodities are harvested from fields with different exposures. The other issue is that farming has been rainfall-dependent. However, in most parts of the North, droughts and other climate change issues have deteriorated the environment over the last two decades. As a result, it is becoming quite difficult to predict the rainfall pattern. This is affecting farming because not many farmers have the capacity to irrigate their land and produce on large scale. Therefore, they are victims to the unpredictable rain for their crops.

    To tackle  these problems,  experts are  pushing  for  precision  agriculture, a high technology that  would enable extension officers and farmers address problems, using  appropriate crop management system that would not only  lead  to  better yields but higher   profits.  Through  precision farming, farmers stand to  benefit from more efficient farm management, fewer inputs, reduced leaching and, therefore, less damage to the environment.

    To  achieve this,  a national  workshop  was organised  in Kaduna  to  train  farmers  to  the use  of  precision farming  techniques.

    Addressing the  workshop n Kaduna, the National Project Coordinator, West Africa Agricultural Productivity Programme (WAAPP)Nigeria, Prof Damian Chikwendu said there  is  need  to address the  challenges of  farmers  planting on  fields that are not homogeneous.

    One  way  to  achieve this, Chikwendu noted, is through  precision agriculture, a farming  method capable  of   addressing the  challenge of unpredictable yields and poor resource management.

    Precision agriculture, he said is an integrated crop management system that attempts to determine the kind and amount of inputs which the actual crop needs for small areas within a farm.

    He said it is often referred to as either Global Position System (GPS) – based agriculture, variable-rate farming, precision farming or site-specific farming. Precision agriculture, he explained, is a farming management concept based on observing and responding to intra-field variations. Besides, it relies on new technologies such as satellite imagery, information technology, and geospatial tools.

    The workshop, he said, was  aimed at acquainting participants with precision farming techniques using technologies such as GPS, geographic information system (GIS), remote sensing, and yield monitors guidance systems for various rate application.

    The overall results of precision farming, according to him,   are more efficient farm management, fewer inputs, reduced leaching and, therefore, less damage to the environment.

    Chikwendu said precision farming is,” doing the right thing, at the right place and at the right time”. Doing the right thing he said however, starts with good managers and good operators doing a good job of using common goods such as planters, harvesters, fertiliser applicators and whatever else that might be needed. According to  him,   precision agriculture technologies provide the information and systems that allow a farmer to optimise and customise the timing, amount, and placement of inputs (seed, fertiliser, pesticides, irrigation and others) for any given section of a field. This allows the farmer to produce the maximum yield from the entire field at the lowest possible cost.

    According to him, the uses of very accurate GPS-based equipment could eliminate overruns and reduce wasted seed and fertiliser. This growing awareness, coupled with the demographic shift to younger, technologically-savvy farmers, has many pundits predicting a dramatic increase in the rate of growth of precision agriculture.

    There are a growing number of companies offering precision agriculture products and services.

    One  of  them  is Clemence and Geoconsult.  Its  Lead Consultant, Dr Aminu Usman said  his  organisation is  ready  to  help  farmers  use  precision  farming to improve  profitability.

    In a bid to fast track its usage nationwide, his organisation and   WAAPP commenced a one week training workshop last month on  GPS to enhance precision farming.

    The first leg of the workshop took place in Kaduna, with 55 participants made up of WAAPP Coordinators and Assistant Coordinating Officers from several universities, research institutes and Agricultural Development Projects (ADP)in attendance.

    Usman lauded WAAPP for initiating the training programme. The global positioning system, he noted, will expose participants to unending possibilities and applications to everyday field operations.

    He urged participants to use the opportunities of the workshop organised by WAAPP to improve their knowledge to enable them join hands in the current drive to take the country to a level of sustainable agricultural development and food security.

    Experts have however said the implementation and use of precision agriculture will not succeed without addressing challenges of small farm holdings.  In this case, the way forward will be to take the technology to small farmers through government sponsored initiatives and continuous research.

    The message has to be taken to farmers that they need to get more involved in using emerging technologies while also providing training in the use of GPS equipment and GIS software for local technicians.   But there are obstacles to small farmers adopting precision farming techniques. These include the low levels of literacy among farmers and the lack of equipment. In addition, land tenure systems are mostly based on smallholdings  and this affects the extent to which precision farming technology could be applied. If the government is to introduce certain precision farming applications in small farms, it would be almost impossible to train the large numbers of barely literate farmers that would be involved.

    For this reason, fisheries expert, Prof Martins Antekhai wants the government to be realistic about the type of farms that could be targeted. He  suggested it should involve  large  farms especially  large ones  that  cover at least 100 hectares  because  of the  cost of  acquiring technologies.

    The whole industry, he explained would benefit in the long run from increased efficiency in management systems where funds to buy large amounts of external inputs are often in short supply. This is because the approach carries many clear messages, such as ‘do not waste fertilisers on soils that are constrained by other factors.’

    For experts, however, precision farming doesn’t need to be high-tech. For example,  farmers  who have  to decide where, when and how to apply the limited amount of manure they  have   on their   farms are  aware of the variability of the soil in their   fields and, in most cases, will not spread the manure equally throughout the farm.

    Antekhai who is of the Faculty of Science, Lagos State University (LASU), said it is unlikely that the rate of agro-technical innovation will slow down.

    He was  of the  opinion, however  that  as the technologies developed, they  become less expensive and more widely available, as bright agricultural minds will observe research and adapt them.

    Eventually, the small farmers will be able to acquire it  to improve farm efficiency.

    Precision farming, for instance, he added has become possible due to the convergence of three groups of modern technologies: information and (wireless) communication technologies, monitoring and measuring technologies (including remote sensing and GIS, yield monitoring and GPS), and automated process control technology.

    Once adapted to farm conditions, these technologies, according to him, will provide a completely new level of accuracy in measuring plant growth, in monitoring on farm growing conditions and in operating farm equipment.

    Many agricultural experts have argued that the use and maintenance of these technologies are beyond the capacity of small scale farmers. It is suggested that they do not have the right educational backgrounds to understand and operate the equipment, and that farms are too small and cropping practices too heterogeneous for them to be used effectively.

    Nevertheless, there have been reports of   many exciting examples of small-scale farmers, nomadic herders and fishermen who have experimented with new technologies, sometimes in projects supported by outside funding and expertise, but oft en on their own account.

    Farmers have adopted en masse the mobile phone, which has proven invaluable in enabling them to access market information and deal with everyday problems that threaten their crops and livestock.  At the same time, agricultural scientists are increasingly becoming interested in working with farmers and rural communities to explore the potential of technologies such as remote sensing, GIS and GPS for monitoring crop yields and quality, and automated process control technology.

     

     

  • ‘Information gap bane of rural farming’

    A lecturer in the Department of Agricultural Economics and Extension of the Delta State University (DELSU), Prof Ogisi Ovuevuraye, has blamed poor information network for small-scale farming problems. Small formers, he said, could not take advantage of developments in agriculture because of communication gap.

    Ogisi said the short life-span of agricultural policies and programmes of government did not allow sufficient time for proper evaluation, thereby putting farmers at a disadvantage.

    He spoke during the 38th inaugural lecture held at the Pre-degree Auditorium in Site III of the university.

    Delivering a lecture titled: Agricultural reforms without food security: A paradox, Ogisi lamented the high level of food importation in the country, despite government’s agricultural trade policies.

    Ogisi called for consistency, effective monitoring and evaluation of resources, stressing that the nation should intensify food production to achieve food security for the teeming populace.

  • How poultry farming eradicates poverty

    While many young people dream of getting well-paid jobs, some are going into poultry farming to make a living. DANIEL ESSIET reports.

    Ugbo Ejike Henry is a graduate of Animal Science and Fisheries, Ebonyi State University. He was jobless after the National youth service. Ebonyi State Government called for intensive three  months training in Agriculture at Soghai Agricultural Institute in Porto Novo, Republic of Benin. He sat for the competitive exam and passed. He was among the selected 25 out of 300. After the training, he benefited from the state government’s loan and was given N2,700,000 to establish his farming business.

    He set up a poultry house (pen) for N1,400,000 in August 2009. Today, he has a lot of chickens. He sells eggs and breeds broilers, which he sells to fast food and hotel operators. He bags the poultry droppings and sells them to the crop farmers as manure.

    Henry said:“So, I make my money from the eggs and  chickens, cassava root tuber and the poultry droppings as manure.”

    He is proud that he is an employer. At Henjyk Majestic Farms Nig Limited, he is into poultry production (layers and broilers), cassava farming production, processing and packaging. Through all these,  his company has  employed some permanent workers.

    His company is in partnership with Ebony State Fadama (111) project to train people who has interest in agribusiness and  help investors to establish their farms.

    He  appealed to young people to approach farming as a business. This is because  employment is not available. He believes that youths can create their own employment regardless of their level of education.

    The ripple effect of small and medium sized entrepreneurs,  such  as Ugbo has made the difference.  He  goes to the grassroots and help  people, teaching  them  how to do business.

    Mr Stephen Oladipupo    launched the poultry business after  quitting his  job  as a marine engineer on a vessel.  Now, he  manages his  own poultry operation and has more than  500 birds.

    Adeleke Theophilus Ayodeji is a 24-year farmer. He hails from Ibadan, Oyo State. He is ambitious and with strong determination to feed the nation and prove to the world that agriculture is the key to ending poverty, unemployment and food insecurity.

    An animal scientist, he  was a participant of the Meet The Executive Business Plan Competition sponsored by Sterling Bank where he presented agriculture as a viable option for wealth creation.

    He served as an attendant and  Supervisor of Animal Production Venture, University of Ibadan.

    He said Anchor Farms is an integrated agricultural venture.

    It  has a poultry section (egg production) with about 2,300 capacity.

    He  supplies chickens. The results are not only a sustainable business, but one that encourages other youths to take up poultry  business.

    He   sees  Nigeria  as a nation  of entrepreneurs and  with  an  environment that  ensures long-term results. With a greater margin of income, he and others can  provide a safety net taking his resources to provide employment, food, clothing, and assistance to those in need.

    Miss Amoo Anifat Olawumi is an  IT graduate. She  was running a poultry business with her mum before she gained admission to a university.

    She  is so  convinced about  her future in poultry  business  that she quitting  her job  to open a big  poultry  business.

    Compared to growing crops, chickens represent a more dependable source of income for her .

    Thousands of similar stories have been playing out across the country in recent years thanks to the growth of the poultry industry.

    Being in the company of her mum  helped her  to refine her  thinking and learn from her ‘ successes and challenges. As part of the training, she developed a business plan for a poultry enterprise.