Agriculture under Buhari’s administration: An appraisal

Agriculture plays a critical role in social and economic development of any country. A strong and robust agriculture sector ensures food security, wealth generation and employment creation.

While some stakeholders argue that the outgoing administration of President Muhammadu Buhari has done enough to transform the sector, other contend that though it has added some values it, more still needs to be done.

The proponents of the administration’s efforts to reposition the sector point at some of the initiatives it has initiated such as the Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP) which was inaugurated by Buhari on Nov 17, 2015.

The programme was conceived to catalyse the agricultural productive base of the country. Its cardinal objective is to uplift the economy through job creation reduce reliance on imported food and industrial raw materials, as well as conserve foreign exchange.

In recognition of the importance of funds in any project, the sector has also witnessed a steady increase in budgetary allocation under the outgoing government with N138.48b allocated to the sector in 2020, N179.4 billion in 2021 and N291.4billion in 2022.

So far, the Federal Government says under the programme it has disbursed more than N800 billion to more than four million smallholder farmers of 23 different commodities.

These commodities included, Rice, Wheat, Maize, Cotton, Cassava, Poultry, Soybeans, 27 Groundnut, Fish), cultivating more than five million hectares of farmland.

The performance of the sector excites Buhari who said his government has done so much in wealth creation for farmers and increasing local production of rice which had hitherto been largely imported.

Speaking at the unveiled mega rice pyramid in Abuja, Buhari said that local rice production had increased from 400million metric tonnes to 745 million metric tonnes in six years.

This, he said, is an indication that Nigeria is making progress in food production and sufficiency.

He urged other stakeholders to double efforts in leveraging the diversification mandate of the Federal Government in growing the economy.

For the feat, the President of the Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria, Mr Amniu Goronyo, commended the outgoing Buhari administration for encouraging rice farmers to boost their productivity and income.

Florence Usman, a rice farmer, said the introduction of the programme had help farmers to improve on their production.

“Before now, I cannot say I was doing well as a farmer, but now with the help I received from the programme, I can say I am doing very good”

“I now farm year round both in the rainy and the dry season, I have received bags of fertilisers, insecticide, water pump and improved rice seed, and this has positively affected by production”, she said.

Another area the administration has performed creditably, according to stakeholders, is livestock.

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Mohammad Abubakar said government has made efforts to boost Nigeria’s ranking in global livestock production.

“The National Livestock Transformation Plan (NLTP) was also inaugurated to modernise pastoral agriculture and livestock production in Nigeria, through the establishment of ranches, and to deliver a lasting solution to recurring clashes between pastoralists and crop farmers.

“Our current ranking by Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) is 15th in the world in cattle, fifth in sheep and third in goat, and 17th in camel farming.

“The continuous extensive system of production is not a viable option since the land area for grazing and feed availability are severely limiting factors in the high livestock producing zones of Nigeria.

“It is therefore very necessary and top priority that all players in the industry focus on meeting the huge demand for pasture.

“This will give a great opportunity to unlock the potential of the Livestock industry and the development of its rich value chains,” he said while inaugurating the National Pasture Development Programme (NAPDEP), in Paikon Kore grazing reserve, FCT.

“President Muhammadu Buhari’s agricultural transformation policies would continue to restore Nigeria`s economic development that would cope with global warming in good and cash production.

“President Buhari has done a commendable job in the agricultural sector. Nigeria is rapidly growing in terms of profitable agricultural production at both dry and rainfall seasons.

“The farmers are becoming more beneficiaries from the national agricultural policies that are acceptable and every farmer is happy with how Nigeria’s agriculture is getting boosts”, said Alhaji Idris Jaga, Chairman, Jigawa State Chapter of All Farmers Association (AFAN) in a media report.

Forum for Agricultural Commodity President, Alhaji Umar Sadiq urged the incoming administration to sustain the agriculture sector reform agenda, particularly the agriculture transformation programme, of the incumbent government.

“The programme has made Nigeria to be a number one producer of rice and other commodities from Africa, and we can say that we are now food sufficient,” Sadiq said.

He, however, appealed to the incoming administration to look into the plight of farmers with the commencement of the 2023 farming season.

The National President of Cotton Farmers’ Association of Nigeria (NACOTAN), Achimugu Anibe, said cotton farmers in Nigeria had witnessed high productivity and high yields since the advent of Bt cotton.

Aribe said the use of advanced technological tools like genetic engineering in crop production to generate yields at economically viable scales for Nigerian farmers and for the revival of collapsing textile industries, had become necessary.

A group, APC Legacy Awareness and Campaign, APC-LAC also said given where the administration met the sector when it commenced in 2015, it has performed creditably.

The group stated this in a statement issued recently in Abuja by its leaders, Ismaeel Ahmed, Lanre Issa-Onilu and Salihu Lukman

“Since 2015 when this administration took over, it has put no one in doubt of its determination to transform the agricultural sector as a major pillar of the country’s economy and a bold statement on its determined efforts at diversification.

“The President’s agricultural revolution is underscored by several critical policies for the enhancement of growth and development”, it posited.

Gov. Muhammad Badaru of Jigawa, an agrarian state, has also lauded the outgoing administration’s performance in the sector.

“The numerous interventions have helped states to execute and complete many projects,” he said.

“The state success story on agriculture is a result of Buhari’s national agricultural policy which also brought about quality fertiliser at affordable price to farmers”, he said in Dutse, the state capital when the Minister of Information and Culture paid him a courtesy visit.

Critics point to the farmers-herders clash as one of the blots on the impressive record of the outgoing administration.

The Food and Agriculture Ogranisation in a report projected that about 25.3 million people in Nigeria would face acute food insecurity during the June to August 2023 lean season.

“Acute food insecurity is mostly driven by the deterioration of security conditions and conflicts in northern states, which as of March 2022 (latest data available) have led to the displacement of about 3.17 million people and are constraining farmers’ access to their lands,” the report said.

This view is re-echoed by Abiodun Olorundenro, operations manager at Aquashoot Farms, who said in a media report that some farmers were paying bandits just to be able to cultivate their farms.

Olorundenro said he is cultivating a smaller farm in Ogun State but he could not cultivate a larger one in Oyo State, adding that “the food shortage is real,” he said.