Bandits: Nigerian farmers beg Tinubu, governors for security cover to facilitate harvesting

Bandits: Nigerian farmers beg Tinubu, governors for security cover to facilitate harvesting

Farmers in Zamfara and Sokoto have appealed to the federal government to deploy more security personnel to protect them from bandits’ attacks, which threaten the harvest of their crops.

A cross-section of farmers in Gusau observed that the bandits were now imposing levies on rural communities, which had been disrupting farmers from harvesting their crops.

The Sarkin Noman Mayanchi in Maru LGA, Kabir Ibrahim, urged the government to be mindful of its responsibilities by deploying more security personnel to provide a solution to the difficulties faced by farmers in rural areas.

”We have recorded bumper harvests in different parts of the state. However, the period of harvest remained a challenge due to bandits’ activities in many rural communities. Farmers are facing difficulties in harvesting their crops in most of the rural areas of Zamfara. Some farmers who cultivated maize and rice are now afraid to go to their farmlands to reap the fruits of their labour,” he said.

He added, “This is harvest season; however, the bandits always come around demanding money from the rural communities, or else they will prevent them from accessing their farmlands. Many farms remained under siege because bandits are demanding payments before allowing farmers to access their farms for harvest. This has led many large-scale farmers to abandon their farms in fear of kidnapping.”

Mr Ibrahim noted with dismay that some communities were forced to adopt different methods to address the situation, including forfeiting a portion of their yields to the bandits, so as to allow them to harvest the remaining crops.

A farmers’ leader in Shinkafi LGA, Adamu Bazamfare, attributed the crash in food prices to both government policies and bumper harvests across different parts of the northern region. Mr Bazamfare appealed for the deployment of more security operatives to support a smoother harvest of crops across the state.

“Governments at all levels need to intervene to allow us to harvest our crops and also prepare for dry season farming,” he pleaded.

The farmers’ leader, who stated that farmers in different parts of the state were pleased with this year’s yield, however, explained that insecurity had prevented them from harvesting what they had cultivated.

”Many farmers refused to cultivate their farmlands in fear of attack, and the few that grew crops are now facing harvest challenges. There is no doubt that farmers have recorded bumper harvests this year, but their major grievance is the demand by bandits to forfeit parts of their harvested crops or face hostility.

“These bandits usually send their boys to stop villagers from harvesting until they pay a certain amount or forfeit some portion of the crops or both,” he said.

According to him, some villages, such as Bullaƙe, Gidan daji, Gidan Arɗo, and Gobirawa in Shinkafi LGA, and other areas, had to pay money to bandits before cultivation, and the same thing happens during the harvest period every year.

Speaking on the importation of food by the federal government, Bazamfare noted that it would certainly have negative consequences for farmers, saying that such a policy would discourage many farmers from engaging in active farming.

He, however, advised the federal government to rechannel the money meant for food importation to subsidize the high cost of fertilizers and other farming inputs, thereby rekindling the hope of farmers.

“Government should create other means to encourage and attract more farmers back to the long-established business,” he said.

In Sokoto, Abubakar Danmaliki, the programme manager of the Sokoto State Agricultural Development Project, stated that farmers across the 23 local government areas had recorded bumper harvests of various crops.

Mr Danmaliki said SADP had commenced compiling post-cultivation reports, “so far so good, this year farmers have recorded bumper harvests”.

The programme manager also identified flood as another factor that affected their area, adding that some areas were completely submerged during this year’s rainy season. According to him, no fewer than eight local government areas were affected, and he assured the government’s readiness to support the affected farmers.

A farmer in Wamakko LGA, Lawalli Yusuf, who said that farmers in the area were able to harvest an appreciable quantity of grains, however, lamented that prices of farm produce were not encouraging.

Mr Lawalli appealed to the federal government to support farmers by reducing the prices of fertilisers and other farm inputs before the next farming season, for the benefit of both farmers and society at large.

NAN reports that a bag of paddy rice sells between N23,000 and N30,000, depending on quality. A bag of maize sells for N32,000; a bag of millet also sells for N32,000. A measure of onions costs N1,300, and pepper is N900 in Sokoto markets and environs.

In Kebbi, farmers identified low commodity prices, insecurity, and inadequate storage facilities as major challenges in the state. A cross-section of the farmers said that although the harvest had been generally good, the fall in prices of farm produce had affected their expected income.

Abdullahi Musa, a rice farmer from Argungu LGA, said this year’s harvest was encouraging compared to previous seasons, but the prices were discouraging.

“This year’s yield is far greater than last year because we have experienced a good pattern of rainfall and the government has supported farmers through the provision of free fertilisers and other farm inputs, but the problem now is that prices have dropped beyond expectation. A bag of paddy rice that sold for N45,000 as at last year, now goes for between N25,000 and N28,000,” he stated.

He attributed the fall in price to a large supply of farm produce in the market and the government’s import policies, which allowed cheaper foreign products to compete with local produce.

Another farmer, Maryam Dogo from Zuru, stated that insecurity remained a major concern, especially for those farming in the remote areas of Danko/Wasagu, Sakaba, and Ribah LGAs.

“Many of our people cannot go to their farms freely because of the fear of attack.
Even during harvest, we have to go in groups for safety, with escort from security agencies or vigilante members,” she said.

Ms Dogo added that most farmers lacked adequate storage facilities, forcing them to sell their produce immediately after harvest at relatively low prices.

Similarly, a millet farmer in Yauri, Garba Noma, observed that the absence of modern silos and warehouses contributed to post-harvest losses.

“We need the government’s intervention in the area of storage. Many farmers lose up to 30 per cent of their crops due to poor storage facilities,” he said.

Regarding the impact of the current harvest on commodity prices, a trader in Birnin Kebbi confirmed that the bumper harvest has contributed to the general decline in prices of grains, including rice, maize, and sorghum.

A market leader, Umaru Adamu, said, “The fall in prices is mostly due to the good harvest this year. Government policies also played a role, but the main reason is that supply is now higher than demand.”

With NAN report