Farmers endorse genetically seeds, frown at unaccesible support

The Nigerian farmers have indicated their intentions to embrace the planting of genetically modified seeds for its potential to give more increased production based on the resistance characteristics to pest/disease, drought and floods.

Farmers also condemned the government's support that never gets to farmers but rather ended into individuals account. 

These were stated in a paper presented by the Vice President ( Root&Tuber), All Farmers Association of Nigeria ( AFAN), who doubles as the nation's Arrow head of Potato producers in the country, Chief Daniel Okafor last Tuesday in a zoom meeting.

 Chief Daniel Okafor said that farmers are ready to embrace the planting of GMO seeds for supplus food productions to stem down food shortage in the country pointing there is need for farmers to grow beyond subsistence level through an efficient support system that gets to farmers, but not to individual pockets.

 Full text of the press conference speech read thus " A PRESS CONFERENCE PRESENTED BY CHIEF DANIEL OKAFOR, NATIONAL PRESIDENT OF POTATO FARMERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA(POFAN) AND THE VICE NATIONAL PRESIDENT(ROOT&TUBER CROPS) ALL FARMERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA(AFAN) THIS 13TH DAY OF AUGUST, 2024.

 Our Esteemed Guests, Gentlemen of the Press, Ladies and Gentlemen. Thank you for honouring this invitation. I am delighted seeing all of you seated here. Just as the topics of this press conference are outlined in the invitation sent to you, I wish to express our opinion and stand as they concern our farmers. Biotechnology seeds, the stand of National Biosafety Management Agency(NBMA) and Nigerian farmers. 

Our stand is that biotechnology seeds are bred to add value to our agriculture. Our crops are facing so many challenges such as: poor yield, pest/disease infestation, drought, weather variation and the rest.

Biotech seeds are meant to address these debilitating issues, and to ensure bumper harvest for farmers. I recommend the seeds to our farmers and advocate for step down training workshop to enable us sensitize them and disabuse their minds of any negative conception regarding the seeds.

The National Biosafety Management Agency (NBMA) has told us that the seeds are very safe and there is no competent medical research or laboratory technology which has any proven evidence of any negative or harmful effect to the body. Step down training and awareness creation for Nigerian farmers to understand the safety and benefits of biotech seeds. As I said above, there is a need for the sensitization of these Biotechnology foods to go beyond boardroom advocacy, ministry and agency and hotel workshops. 

We need to go to the farmers in their farms and domains, villages, churches and mosques. We can do this also through other various types of campaigns such as: road shows, hand bills, radio jingles, social media, house to house and town hall meetings. Many of them have been fed with negative stories of all kinds. 

We can’t afford to miss out on this opportunity to secure our country's food wisely. It’s no news anymore that our country is politically insecure. It is audible to the deaf and clear to the blind. Without security, it’s in vain that we discuss this. Nobody will practice agriculture anymore. Bandits, kidnappers and herders are everywhere terrorising farmers not only on their farms but also in their villages. We appreciate governments at all levels for their efforts to curb the menace of insecurity in our land so that our farmers can go to farm. 

These efforts are not enough in that the insecurity is still prevalent in many communities in the states. The governments should do more so as to win the confidence of the farmers. We advocate that farmers should be allowed to make arrangements for their security through self-guard and ICT technology operations. All stakeholders and state actors should be involved to make it a success. Financial marginalization of the real farmers in Nigerian Agricultural schemes and incentives should be addressed.

It is good I address this ugly situation that is happening in our agricultural space. It’s our observation that most of the funds mapped out for agricultural programmes, designed to assist farmers end up in individual accounts. This is why our farmers cannot grow out of subsistence farming because of the high cost of inputs and labour. They cannot afford them because they don’t have money. 

Governments at all levels should put measures to monitor the implementation of agric. programmes in order to achieve the desired goal. Mandatory insurance for farmers and their farms. Our view in this take is that the National Insurance Corporation ( NAIC), should design a means to insure all the farmers and their farms.

 To do this, an authentic list of the farmers should be collated from farmers’ organizations and the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, aggregated and submitted so that some insurance incentives will be considered for them. This will give them some confidence to go to the farm"