Bachaka farmers abandon farming for GGW – Project

70-year-old Rabi Kaka Bachaka is among many women who recounted their experiences after abandoning their farms to work as volunteers with the GGW programme.While narrating her situation, Rabi, a widow and a mother of four, said she went to assist her son, Abdullahi Kaka Bachaka, who abandoned his farm to work as an operator with […]

70-year-old Rabi Kaka Bachaka is among many women who recounted their experiences after abandoning their farms to work as volunteers with the GGW programme.
While narrating her situation, Rabi, a widow and a mother of four, said she went to assist her son, Abdullahi Kaka Bachaka, who abandoned his farm to work as an operator with the GGW.
She said: “I stopped farming to join the women volunteer group this year, with the hope of earning a little more to support my children. It appears my situation has degenerated from bad to worse. I think I was better off in my ground nut farm where I used to make up to 10 bags. My son, Kaka, kept raising my hope. Please help us to plead to government to intervene.
“We were told that the programme will improve our lives, instead, what we are witnessing is that our means of survival is going from bad to worse. Please, talk to them to fulfill all their promises. We are really in a bad shape here and this situation might affect our zeal to contribute in the fight against desertification which we cannot do on an empty stomach after abandoning our farms.”
Rabi’s son, Bachaka, 35, the owner of some of the farmlands used for the GGW programme, said owners of farmland taken over for the programme got compensation of between N600,000 to N80,000 and were allowed to cultivate their crops.
He said he was paid N85, 000 on his farmland of about 10 hectares and allowed to cultivate the beans, millet and sorghum he planted. He said that he was promised by GGW to be employed as a security man and operator of the water tank house, lamenting that the promise made to them of getting employment has failed to materialise.
He said that since 2013 when he abandoned farming to work with the GGW, he has not received any salary or allowance.
He said he was made to open an account with a bank, adding that he does not even have an idea of how much his salary will be. “I have two wives, eight children, my aged mother and two junior sisters who feed under me.
“I used to cultivate over 250 bags of millet, 50 bags of Sorghum and 20 bags of beans before the introduction of this programme that came with full of hope for many of us in the community. But now that I do not have enough time and enough farmland,  my farming capacity has dropped to 50 bags of  millet, five bags of Sorghum and just two bags of beans, not enough to feed my large family and take care of their upkeep.
“I am still hopeful that those in charge of the programme will look into our plight, considering the huge amount of money that government spends on the programme and the promise to provide job for the people. I do not want to leave now for someone to take over and reap from the fruit of my long time sacrifice.”
He said four of his colleagues that were absorbed under the GGW programme are now receiving N18, 000 per month as salary and have completely abandoned farming.
“The other women farmers that work here have abandoned farming for over one year. They are from five different women groups working here as volunteers for free. But occasionally, they give them wrappers to wear during occasions such as the last flag-off ceremony.”
However, Yahaya Mohammed, 38, a former livestock dealer who has a wife and seven children, said: “I used to supply rams from villages in Republic of Niger to Bachaka market before I got this job. This job has improved my life better than when I was a ram merchant where I make just between N5,000 to N10,000 per month as against my current monthly income of N18,000. I am among the first batch of eight people employed since eight months ago under federal ministry of environment as a forestry guard.”
While launching the project, President Jonathan described it as “a community driven integrated right development approach and the project is going to roll back poverty and address the vulnerability of the society,” adding: “The programme has also brought about employment to the teeming youth as about 2,329 youth have been engaged as forest guards.
“For citizens to create wealth, the environment must be healthy; and at long run the project will attract enormous benefit such as attracting industries that will be processing the products from the economic trees planted.”
The president advised state governments to take the project seriously, promising that the federal government will fund it.