Nigerian agricultural prowess and current insecurity

Nigeria is so blessed with agricultural land that all that needs to be done is to tickle the soil with a hoe and it smiles with harvest. The name Nigeria ought to be synonymous with agriculture by practice not just by name, because our identity depicts agriculture; the green colour of the national flag shows […]

Nigeria is so blessed with agricultural land that all that needs to be done is to tickle the soil with a hoe and it smiles with harvest. The name Nigeria ought to be synonymous with agriculture by practice not just by name, because our identity depicts agriculture; the green colour of the national flag shows land for agriculture and the shield on the national coat of arms represents the fertile soil for same. Unfortunately, a good number of citizens suffer from malnutrition as a result of acute hunger.  

Before the discovery of crude oil in 1956, agriculture used to be the mainstay of the country. Now the nation has realised it has to reclaim its past glory, feeding the teeming population and directing funds, otherwise used for importation of various food items, to other infrastructural and human capital development, 

However, the quest to achieve self-sufficiency in agriculture and food security in the country may not be feasible anytime soon with the rate of insecurity across the country. 

In January 2020, the country became the largest rice-producing country in Africa with eight million tonnes per annum as against the total of 14.6 million tonnes produced in the continent, There is also appreciable progress being recorded in the production of other food crops simultaneously. However, this progress seemed to have faded into thin air following heightened insecurity leading to decrease in farming activities  

For agriculture to continue to make progress and even develop beyond the old fashioned we still practise, there is an urgent need to redouble the fight against banditry. 

Lawal Dahiru Mamman, a corp member, wrote from Abuja through [email protected]