Plateau farmers groan over scarcity of fertilizer

Daily Trust reports that Bokkos local government council, like most of the councils in Plateau State did not purchase fertilizer for sale and distribution to its farmers this year. Consequently, the price of the commodity now goes for between N5, 000 and 5, 600 in the markets compared to last year when it sold between […]

Daily Trust reports that Bokkos local government council, like most of the councils in Plateau State did not purchase fertilizer for sale and distribution to its farmers this year. Consequently, the price of the commodity now goes for between N5, 000 and 5, 600 in the markets compared to last year when it sold between N3, 100 and N3, 500.
Most of the farmers who spoke to our correspondent on their expectations for this year’s farming season expressed doubts on doing much this year. Chairman, Plateau Traders and Marketers Association, Bokkos Branch, Mr. Sunday Mabas, who is also a farmer, said scarcity and hike in prices of fertilizer would affect farm out-put this farming season.
Mabas said “last year our council purchased 40 truckloads of fertilizer and sold it to us at subsidized rates but today the story is different.”
Helen Sunday, another farmer from the area, said the high price of fertilizer in the market was discouraging small scale farmers from planting crops this season adding that: “with the late arrival of rain fall this year and the lack of fertilizer to farm, it means nothing serious would come out of our efforts this season.”
However, Monday Kassam, the council chairman for Bokkos told journalists that the council could not buy fertilizer for sale and distribution to farmers this year because of the dwindling statutory revenue allocation being received.
According to Kassam, “We shall try our best as a council to see how we can get some substantial quantity of fertiliser for sale to our farmers at a subsidized rate to cushion the effect.”