Insecurity threatens food security in Nigeria, farmers raise alarm

Farmers in the country have cried out that insecurity in all geopolitical zones have driven them out of their farmlands and that food insecurity was looming.

They have therefore begged both the state and federal government to as a matter of urgency address cases of kidnapping and banditry across the country in order to overcome the looming challenges of food insecurity.

The National President of Cocoa and Plantain Farmers  Association of Nigeria (CPFAN)  Ayodele Ojo, who spoke with newsmen in Akure, lamented the incessant killing of farmers and destruction of their farmlands.

Ojo said this was threatening food security in the country. According to him, “most farmers had  abandoned their farms over fear of being killed or kidnapped while the kidnappers and bandits have taken over the farms and security operatives are helpless.

Ojo said the farmers cannot access their farms to harvest their farm produce despite the fact that the produce are due for harvest, adding that the bandits have harvested some of the farm products, while they also pay ransom for their freedom.

He alleged that some of the hoodlums who are Fulani herdsmen are now in control of their farms.

“We are in a very difficult situation now because we are not allowed to visit our farms. Many of us have not been to farms for weeks now because of the fear of being kidnapped.

“These people kidnap farmers for ransom and if a farmer fails to pay, he can be killed, We need security agencies to come to our aid, our means of livelihood is threatened and our lives are in danger”

Ojo said that if the situation is not brought under control, there will be shortage of food next year.

He also said that Nigerian farmers reject outrightly the creation of grazing zone for herders across the country

The President, said the farmers across the country frowned over the instruction of President Bola Tinubu, calling on state governors to provide land for grazing for herders.

According to him ” the creation of grazing zone for herders is an invitation to farmers/ herders in the country,  farmers have faced a lot of challenges and the federal government should not contribute to food insecurity in the land.

According to him, mandating state governors to give land as grazing zone will be a repeat of same ineffective strategies employed in the past.

He therefore however, called on the National Assembly to look into the call for the grazing zone by Tinubu.

Ojo said that “We believed in the capacity of President Tinubu to solve the problems bedevilling Nigeria but we want to beg him to allocate  more money to agriculture sector in order to find a lasting solution to the challenges of food security looming in the country.

” We totally reject this proposition of President Tinubu on creation of grazing zones. What we need to do at the moment is to find solution to the problem of food scarcity and how to encourage farmers to grow more food and not allowing another round of destruction.

“Allocate more money and farm input for farmers, and provide adequate security in all villages and communities by joint hands with our security operatives to flush out all the elements from our society.

The President said that ” We are ready to partner the federal and state government to ensure we have food abundance in Nigeria in order to remain the giant of Africa that we are truly are.”

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