Editorial: Benue state: agric facilities collapse, food basket leaks. By Nenge Liam, Makurdi.

Though Benue State is the acclaimed Food Basket of the Nation, the position has depreciated significantly, and today states like Nassarawa, Niger, Taraba and Plateau seemed to be far ahead in the growth and production of varieties of farm produce. This is as a result of total neglect of farmers in the provision of farm inputs especially tractors, agricultural loans, improved seeds and agricultural extension services in the recent past.

Before the advent of civilian administration of Senator George Akume and Hon. Gabriel Suswam who have ruled the State for the past 16 years, Agricultural infrastructures at Ministry of Agriculture, Benue Agriculture and Rural Development Agency, Department of fisheries, Fertilizer Processing Company, and several demonstration farms dotted all over the State were functional.

All these infrastructures have collapsed and their premises overgrown by weeds while snakes and reptiles are all over the places.

The state ministry of Agriculture headquarters that harbored functional tractors and extension vehicles and well trained officers and scientists has become a ghost of itself with no single tractor in sight. Apart from the office of the Commissioner, Permanent Secretary and Director of Agriculture, most offices remain shut with other roof tops begging for rehabilitation with only 20 staffers counted on the spot during food farm news visit to the place. 

Food Farm News visit to the State Agriculture and Rural Development Agency revealed that the place has become the shadow of itself as weeds and grasses have taken over the place due to none agricultural activities going on.

 Benue state agricultural extension services was established to offer extension services and provide improved seeds, facilitate and grant foreign partnership for the local farmers. Ensure that tractors, harvesters, pesticides and several other farm inputs are offered to farmers at subsidized rates. 

Also the department of Fisheries was not in anyway spared as marketing of fingerlings and hatcheries have stopped just as Fertilizer Processing and Manufacturing Company Located along Makurdi-Naka Road is not operational as at the time of filing this story.

It was gathered that the fertilizer company used to chunk out thousand tons of finished products to the farmers in the state and others in the country as trailer load of fertilizers are being moved out on daily basis in their hundred.

Consequently, the state is now losing her bride of being the food basket of the nation as all measures that ensured this are no more functioning due to neglect on the part of state government just as the immediate past President, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan’s agricultural transformation agenda was not allowed to strive to the benefit of farmers.

When One billion naira was allocated for disbursement to Benue farmers like other states, food farm news gathered that the farming families who are the major producers of yams, maize, cassava, potatoes, mangoes, oranges, soyabeans, beniseeds, rice and tomatoes were completely sidelined and denied the facility under the disguise of corporate and mechanized farming.

 A source told us that only a paltry of 1.5 million naira was extended to the Chairman of All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) as the only registered farmers out of the over 8,000 registered farmers in the state while several protests and petitions by other farmers fell on deaf ears.

Top State Government Agricultural Scientists and officials who spoke to Food Farm News on condition of anonymity lamented the despicable neglect of the sector by the past governments as never in the history of Benue State before. Agricultural festivals like Agricultural Shows, Lake Aketa Fishing Festivals and a host of others including the posting of Agricultural extension workers to villages have all disappeared under the past civilian administrations in the state.