Editorial- Agricultural insecurity, way forward

The farming situation in the country has been threatened to an extent that 60-70% of crops and livestock producers have abandoned their activities for the safety of their lives elsewhere.

Unabated tribal conflicts, herders/ farmers' killing themselves, killing and displacement by Boko Haram with bandits, kidnappings and cattle' rustlers are all physical features of what have engulfed the rural communities where foods are supposedly to be produced for national consumption.

Of course no amount of inputs and loans support from any quarter can remedy food shortage where there is insecurity which is the heart of the matter we are talking about here for a speedy solution.

Experts and eminent Nigerians have exhaustively analysed this even at COVID-19 immediate and after effects, but to no avail as insecurity tension in these rural areas are getting heightened and worsened till date.

The effects of all these vices have as a matter of fact negatively affected our food availability to ensure enough and checkmate unholy skyrocketing prices in the market places where the cost of a tomato basket, potato, onion and pepper are far higher beyond the reach of many average Nigerians just as the same high prices had seriously cut across all the agricultural produce, name them, yams, rice, millet, sorghum, ginger, cocoa, cassava, pineapple, pawpaw, fish, chicken, maize and meat etc.

We can't but sit down and ask for food abundancy without ensuring internal safety of our food producers who had all left their homes for the lack of security, and taking refuge at the Internally Displaced Camps ( IDPs) all across the states of federation especially in the North. All efforts must be concerted to ensure their return for food production through farming.

It will be very necessary that a critical strategic steps be taken to restore sanity with peace into these rural areas of the food baskets of the nation that cut across all the states with their crops comparative advantage that insecurity has drastically reduced to food high prices.

More security presence must be deplored into our rural areas in a more disguised way to quickly ensure arrest of the urgly situation that is jeopardizing all the government and developmental partners' effort towards food security in Nigeria. 

This calling has become very necessary for the Tinubu/ Shettima administration to consider very seriously in view of food challenges currently facing the country even as we speak that many farmers have abandoned their rural abodes for safety.