AGRIC SECTOR REFORMS: PROSPECTS FOR 2015 FARMING SEASON

The agric sector remained a reporter’s dilemma in 2014 because the bulk of fresh food produced during the year, as usual, still came from the rural dwellers that had neither accurate records nor brand names. For his perennial lack of proper storage facility, the farmer in the hinterlands cannot tell how many baskets of tomatoes, yam tubers or the quantity of vegetables that got decayed and wasted in the long distance journey to the urban market place.

 A synergy of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), other financial institutions as well as the organized private sector, notably the National Association of Small (and Medium) Scale Industrialists had produced a mantra which aimed at ensuring that agriculture must be run as business. Agribusiness has since become a template of discussion for investment or any financial facility in the agric sector. It is also encouraging that the ministry of agriculture has built the Touch and Pay technology (TAP) into the Growth Enhancement Support scheme (GES) which has so far ensured that fertilizer and other farm inputs get directly to farmers, even in the rural areas. 

Yet, it is difficult to apprise the exact impact of the on-going reforms in the agric sector since the rural farmer is still tilling the soil, growing his crops and harvesting his seeds or grains without keeping farm records. And regulators are constantly short of accurate operating data. It does not help either, that no one is sure of how many jobs that the federal government intervention has so far created in this sector of the economy.

However, there is no doubt that the reforms which the Jonathan administration embarked on three years earlier and sustained in the past twelve months has induced more people back to the farm. It is equally not surprising that otherwise jobless youths has taken up entrepreneurship in  fish farming, plantain and palm fruit plantations. They are also expanding the rice fields and many more has gone into other specialized areas of food production and processing. The minister of agriculture Dr. Adewumi Adesina has received loud applause for pursuing a policy framework that may give Nigeria self sufficiency in rice and sugar production. In the Western states, cassava is on the threshold of replacing wheat flour for the bakeries. Cassava floor bread now graces our breakfast tables!
The return of rail transportation is a big plus for farmers in many states of the North.

 It is hoped that the recent rail contract to a Chinese firm will be successfully delivered within the contract time frame and farmers in the beneficiary states will then have a relief over their produce evacuation problems. Across the Niger, in the South East, a number of farmers spoke to this correspondent on the passing year and the prospects for 2015.

Chief Ernest Dike Nwosu, current best farmer award winner in Abia state and 2013 best farmer runner-up at the National Agric Show, spoke to Food-Farm News mid December. He scored the passing year high and raised the expectations for the New Year. His words: “For the first time, government was able to deal with farmers directly through the GES. Truly, it was no longer business as usual as Mr. President had promised and farmers were able to access fertilizer, improved seeds and other inputs at subsidized rates. However, we have heard of some federal government interest free loans meant to provide the needed support for farmers to expand their farms, produce more food, create jobs and eventually key into the agric value chain. But I do not think those facilities has produced the desired results.

 Again, we know the federal government had approved and disbursed a N220 million loan facility for cassava growers. That facility was apparently covered in the 2014 national budget but this is the end of the year and no farmer has been able to benefit from that very good gesture of the Jonathan administration. We probably have not heard the last word on this yet. And in spite of this red tape delay, I can tell you confidently that 2014 was a good year for farmers generally and we look forward to enjoy greater support from the government and donor organizations in the 2015 farming season”.

“The good thing about 2014 was that through the GES scheme, President Goodluck Jonathan was able to convince Nigerian farmers that he truly recognized the need to feed the nation by encouraging farmers”, says Chief Samuel Emejuru, palm tree grower and cassava farmer. Answering another question, he said, “The subsidized fertilizer and improved seeds made accessible to farmers helped to improve my output in the passing year. We expect the federal government to ensure that the various loan facilities approved for farmers actually get to those of us based in the rural areas. I don’t know the situation in other states but here in Abia, it is surprising that a 9% interest was placed on the N100 million farmers’’ support loan facility and yet the real farmers were short-changed.

 For instance, thousands of farmers paid N1500 to buy loan application forms, spent more money to submit it with passport pictures attached and at the end of the day, there was no loan to the real farmers and yet it was obvious that somebody somewhere was merely milking the farmers to enrich his own pocket. On the cassava grower’s N220 million loan, we had to buy the form twice making a total of N12, 000 but nearly one year after, we were told that another condition was for us to open an account with Bank of Agriculture (BOA) which we did, six months after we were told to pay a counterpart fund of N20,000 which we did and yet we do not know how much we may be given. All the terminal requirements have been fulfilled by many farmers several months ago and as I speak to you, no cassava farmer has accessed this loan and the 2015 planting season is already here with us. With this kind of scenario, we are only hopeful that 2015 will be a better year for farmers, even though it is an election year”.

Mr. Goddy Asonye, a fish farmer based in Akanu village in Ugwunagbo council area of Abia state told Food-Farm News that he responded to government call for young university graduates to embrace the opportunities in the agric sector and chose fish farming as a new entrepreneur. “I built my first fish pond in 2013 and throughout the passing year, business was good and I built more ponds.  Now I am an employer of about 16 youths and my hope is that 2015 shall be my year of consolidation with more fish ponds and this shall create more job opportunities for my fellow youths”, he concluded.
Chief Donlop Okoro, Abia state chairman of All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), took a retrospective look at 2014 and concluded that the year under review was a mixed bag of joy and sorrow. “We at AFAN, the executive and the entire workforce of farmers in Abia state have enjoyed the support of both the federal government and the encouragement of our agric friendly state government. Many farmers had reported bountiful yields at the 2014 harvest and that of course came with gratitude to the federal government who decided to reach the farmers directly to avoid the usual stories of diversion of fertilizers and the attendant high prices. Here in Abia state, we farmers appreciate the policy content of federal government intervention in the Growth Enhancement Support scheme (GES).

The policy has regenerated a lot of interest in farming, especially for the youths. And another advantage is the higher yields recorded in 2014. This is one source of our joy. But we are also worried over the anguish our members are passing through in the struggle to access the financial support facilities which government has introduced to enhance business growth in the agric sector.