-Sadly, Nigeria is practising tractorisation, not mechanised farming-AFAN Chairman
-“Let me say that we are yet to practice mechanized farming in Nigeria, what we are doing is tractorizsation. Everyone wants a tractor which does very limited things. It ploughs and ridges the soil for you. What about the planters, harvesters, processors? We don’t have processing machines.
-“We are doing tractorisation not mechanisation, that’s the truth. You hear people talking about mechanized farming with tractor, no you are doing tractorisation.
-“There are so many windows in the Central Bank but some have very stringent conditions attached except that they are given the loans as palliatives to farmers as COVID-19 loan to cushion the effect of the pandemic.”
Prince Bassey Inwang is the Chairman, All Farmers Association of Nigeria, AFAN, Akwa Ibom Chapter. In this exclusive interview with Morenews, he maintained that part of the problems facing the quest for food security and sufficiency is the attitude of the people towards farming, insisting that, Nigeria is practising tractorisation, not mechanized farming
Can you shed light on AFAN and her activities in Akwa Ibom State?
All Farmers Association of Nigeria is a national body. It has chapters in all the states in Nigeria, including Abuja. I’m the state chairman in Akwa Ibom State Chapter. We have the National Working Committee; the National Executive Committee and we also have the State Working Committee. There are chapters in all the local government areas and wards. That is why I can mention who a farmer is in your village without asking you because they are connected to the state network.
Activities of AFAN everywhere is to mobilize farmers in food production to feed the teeming population and for commerce and industry, that is, for export. As you know, we produce food for the purpose of consumption and for sales to make money. AFAN is also an advocacy group which advocates on behalf of farmers.
We also work with the farmers towards solving their problems, that is, mitigating on behalf of the farmers. Another thing is that we cater for the welfare of farmers in the state by speaking for and also ensuring that their rights and interest are protected.
Presently in Akwa Ibom State, by the grace of God, by August, 2020 my administration will be one year old. The present executive of AFAN was elected into office on the 2nd August, 2019. So far, we have done our best by organizing the farmers into different commodity associations such Cassava Farmers Association, Yam Farmers Association, Rice Farmers Association, Sheep/Goat Farmers Association, and so on.
We also try to develop the value chain. Value chain means, for instance, we pick cassava as a commodity and develop the value chain from the producer to processor to the marketer and to the final consumers. That’s where we are now and that is the essence of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria. Our major task is to ensure that farmers are in one-fold and of course, membership is not compulsory but if you know you cannot speak for yourself as a farmer, then you have to join AFAN.
In Akwa Ibom State in particular, farmers are recognised. If the Commissioner for Agriculture, Dr Glory Edet or the state governor, Mr. Udom Emmanuel wants to do something involving farmers they always work with the leadership of the association by seeking our advice on possible ways of assisting the farmers than doing it politically. Politically, I mean a situation where government wants to empower people without knowing if the capacity of the person has been built. But in our case, we have been building up the capacity of the farmers through training from time to time.
Like on the15th of June, 2020, AFAN, as a body in the state, distributed farm input such as coconut seedlings, orange, potatoes and improved plantain suckers, to some select schools. That exercise has really brought us to limelight and also gave us more opportunities to sell our improved plantain suckers.
It is not a challenge per se. When you talk about food security and sufficiency, it must start from your home. As a journalist, you should own a farm. At that subsistence level you can feed your family. That is when you can talk about food sufficiency. You know, you may secure food but not sufficient for you to take to the market.
There is a challenge anyway; number one is the attitude of the people. Before now nobody saw agriculture as a business. We want to be engineers, medical doctor, politicians and so on, nobody thought of agriculture as a business but because crude oil has failed us people started developing the interest for agriculture. Before now, if you tell someone I am a farmer, people will be laughing at you but now agriculture is at the centre stage; that has help to revamp the dwindling economy. The way out is still agriculture.
The other challenge bothers on attitude of the people. People still want to farm the same way their parents used to farm without looking at modern farming technologies and techniques of doing it. For instance, it will surprise you that if you tell someone that you want to give your goat injection, they may be laughing at you because they never thought that goat could be given injection. But this is a very lucrative business. So, the attitude of the people is one of our challenges.
We should know that government cannot do everything for us. That is why in a community where you have well-to-do people, they should encourage in agriculture by empowering the farmers in their localities by buying farm inputs for them, buying farming implements for them; even common thing as hoe but they won’t do it. When they want to do empowerment you see them buying sewing machines, motorcycles and other things. However, we have really changed the mindset of people and now they want to embrace agriculture and do it as a business. You may have passion for farming but that is at the subsistence level.
If you want to do it like business that is where you make the money. Like this morning we have sold maize cobs about N57,000, yesterday we had N85,000 from the 8 hectares of land we cultivated. What you put in is what you get as output. So, the challenges are from you and me before we talk about the government. But governments will come in to support when they know that you are serious and doing your business well.
So, I’ve mentioned the attitude of the people, what people think agriculture is. It is not a dirty job, sir. It is a professional job. Let me tell you, before now, when people want to give scholarship or bursary, they will look for people studying engineering, medicine, etc but now people are looking for those that will study agriculture to give scholarship because of the nature of the business.
Look around Akwa Ibom State, all the Commissioners in the State Executive Council are all farmers because of the awareness His Excellency, the Governor has created. He charged people clamouring to become commissioners and Special Assistants to go and start farming or they should forget it.
Do you think those who have ventured into agriculture through that policy are doing well in the business?
Yes, they are doing well. I don’t want to mention names. Recently I met one of them in a shop coming to buy knapsack sprayers, I asked what he intend to do with it and he said he is a farmer. I met the other one from Onna who has planted about 1.5 hectares of corn. He has planted one hectare of cassava which in his life time he never thought of being a farmer.
I am presently consulting for him to start goat farming too. So, the governor has successfully created aware
ness in agriculture and also re-oriented the mindset of the people about agriculture. If everyone of is farming then we will not lack what to eat and prices of some food stuff will come down. But I bet you, by next year, the price of garri can’t be the same as it is now because a lot of people have gone into farming and they are doing well.
How about mechanised farming? What is government doing to assist individual farmers in this direction?
It is not all about government. An individual should be able to buy a tractor. Let me say that we are yet to practice mechanized farming in Nigeria, what we are doing is tractorisation. Everyone wants a tractor which does very limited things. It ploughs and ridges the soil for you. What about the planters, harvesters, processors?
We don’t have processing machines. If I’ve a big hectare of land now to plant maize, I will not need to use manual labourers to harvest them, rather, machine do the work for me while the truck will bring them to me on the road for people to buy. If I want to shelve my maize now, I don’t need to call people to sit around me. I just put them in a machine to shelve them for me.
But here in Nigeria, we have not gone to that level yet. We are doing tractorisation not mechanisation, that’s the truth. You hear people talking about mechanized farming with tractor, no you are doing tractorisation. After plowing and ridging another machine is needed to do the weeding, another machine should apply fertilizer for you.
Not when you do all these with your hands and you are saying you are doing mechanisation, no, we are not doing that. But hopefully, we have contacted some companies in some countries such as India for some machines. These things are not too expensive. There is a machine your little boy can operate and use in plowing the soil. It is like riding a motorcycle. It does the same work tractors do. So, the issue of mechanisation, I think we are far from it but we will get there soon by the grace of God.
What about fertilizer supply to farmers? Why are we not having the subsidized fertilizer again in Akwa Ibom state?
It wasn’t a state programme. It was national. That is when we were doing Growth Enhancement Scheme (GES) and e-wallet. Then you’ll sit in the comfort of your home and receive a call directing you to go to a particular place to get some bags of fertilizers in a subsidized rate. It was subsidized by the state and federal governments. Then, they’ll also give you some seeds/grains for free but since 2015 when this present (Buhari’s) government at the federal level came to be that has not happened again.
Farmers are no longer getting fertilizers at subsidized rate except what the state government is doing by bringing a fertilizer blending plant at Abak called Green World Technology where farmers can obtain fertilizer at subsidized rate. It is sold at N5500 whereas in the open market it is sold at N6000. At least, the state government has subsidized fertilizer to farmers in the state but there’s no universal subsidy on fertilizer again.
What role should government play in encouraging individuals with interest to go into mechanisation or tractorisation according to you?
Presently, we have about ten tractors provided by the state government for farmers in the state. We know it is not adequate. It is subsidized and it is the cheapest in terms of cost.
We have many windows in Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) where a farmer/businessman willing to buy a tractor can go and obtain loan to finance agriculture not only buying the tractor. Tractor is an implement. A private person can afford it. You can afford it; I can afford it. Tractor is about N7.5 million or N4.5 million depending on the horse power that you need.
So, there are so many windows in the Central Bank but some have very stringent conditions attached except that they are given the loans as palliatives to farmers as COVID-19 loan to cushion the effect of the pandemic. Because of that, they have removed some of the stringent requirements such as collateral and guarantor. People are obtaining the loan now. So, federal and state governments should assist by injecting more money into the system for us to achieve food security, availability and sufficiency.
Akwa Ibom State Government is trying; right now we have 500,000 cocoa seedlings at Odoro Ikpe in Ini Local Government Area that has been given out to cocoa farmers free with chemicals and fertilizers. They have been doing that for years. We have been enjoying free farming inputs like cassava cuttings and maize grains from state government.
For instance, last week, Central Bank came here to distribute maize grains, fertilizer and chemicals to Maize Growers Association (Farmers) who have met the conditions under Anchor Borrowers Scheme. They will only have to pay back after 3 years with only about 9 percent interest rate.
That’s mitigation. That means if they do well, they will see their money even before the end of the year. Another thing is that the livestock farmers will have to go and partner with them in order to produce feeds because the major challenges in feeds production is always the raw materials.
Recently, Governor Udom Emmanuel announced plans to give loans to farmers in the state, but we heard from the grapevine that genuine farmers may not get the loan. What have you done to ensure that genuine farmers benefit from the scheme?
There is nothing like grapevine. I am the Chairman of All Farmers Association of Nigeria, Akwa Ibom State Chapter. So, I am the one presenting farmers to government for the loan. Yes, the state government is given interest free loans to farmers but the condition is that the Ministry of Agriculture will come to verify your farm, give you a form to feel. So that is the information, which you can get from me or the Ministry of Agriculture.
Presently, state government is given interest free loan to vegetable farmers that is why you see cucumber everywhere, waterleaf, okro, fruited pumpkin and so on because that interest free loan has encouraged the farmers to boost their productivity. Government also gave the same loan to maize farmers who are enjoying today. For instance, I just talked about how we cultivated 8 hectares of farm at Mbak Itam 3. Government assisted those farmers.
So, the genuine farmers are the beneficiaries though some people still try to hijack the programme the way they used to do. Because before now, if anything like that happened, they will bring list from politicians, one person will take the forms, and give to his wife, give to his son, give to his nephew and the in-laws but when the money comes nobody is using the money in the business. They believe, after all, I will refund the loan as and when due without using the money for the purpose it was meant for.
But now, we want to see that thing you collected the loan for happening. That is why Dr Glory Edet, the Honourable Commissioner for Women Affairs and Agriculture, a very practical person, is always insisting on going out to the farm to see what you are doing with the money. For instance, I’ll start my tour next week and after my own, the honourable commissioner will start her own.
I will first of all go and verify to see those that got the money, how do they use it and be sure they use it for the purpose it was meant for? That is the way to go now. Now, government has given loan to cassava farmers and their size of farm has increased. That of the first season farming has closed, we are now planning that of the second season farming.
Now, we want to look at the livestock and fishery sector because for sometimes that sector has not been touched. They have called me severally and I have been queried. What happens to fish farming in Akwa Ibom because you cannot have a balanced diet without protein from animal and some plants.
So, by God’s grace, I have started compiling list of livestock/fishery farmers in the state so that when they bring their list and I bring mind, we can marry it together. I don’t need to know the individual involved but once you are a registered member of our association that is where we start to know you and can speak on your behalf.
What is the rationale behind the recent farmers’ enumeration project of the Akwa Ibom State Government?
Yes, it is important so as to know farmers. The last we did was about 10 or 50 years ago but then it must be a regular exercise. We want to know who are the farmers so that I don’t even need to call you, I will only look at the list and know that you are a farmer.
So, the essence is to know how many farmers we have in case governments want to empower them. That is why true farmers want to be enumerated but those fake ones don’t want enumeration but they need loan.
But one of the requirements for the enumeration is that you must have voters card; isn’t it suspicious that government has some political reasons for the exercise?
No, there is no way that is stated in the form as a requirement. Maybe you don’t understand. What they need is any one of Voters’ Card or National Identity card or Drivers license. Those are identity factors. I don’t know of any insistence on only voters’ card before registration.
But there are complaints that only voters card are accepted by the enumerators?
No, that is not true. I am a member of the planning committee. I represent farmers in the state in that committee.
Have you heard from the farmers or the enumerators in the field?
(cuts in) They’ve told us that. There is no such complaint by farmers. Even in the form, it is started that National Identity card can also be accepted as an identification factor.
What are the procedures to become a member of All Farmers Association of Nigeria?
All you need do is start farming and then come and register with us in AFAN.
Let’s talk about the state Government Economic Recovery Committee which you were a member representing farmers in the state. What should farmers who are badly affected as a result of COVID-19 expect?
We are still on it now, only that Akwa Ibom State Government didn’t wait for post COVID-19 era before setting up the committee to proffer solutions and make recommendations to government on what to do to mitigate the effect of the pandemic which has ravaged the economy so much.
The committee went into action and submitted it report and His Excellency, the governor, in his knowledge, picks out five members of the committee to form the Implementation Committee. You know normally since the committee had finished its work it should have been dissolved but as I am speaking to you now that committee is intact; still holding meetings.
The governor picks 5 members out to form Implementation Committee and allowed the committee to go ahead. As we speak, the implementations of the report has started taken place in the state. For example, the recent pronouncement of tax relief was a recommendation of the committee. We also recommended free ticket which is implemented today.
Of course, we also talked about changing the mind set of people; that is re-orientation. Then last week or so, some civil servants in the state were trained. That was what we recommended “Changing the attitude of the people towards government,” that government will not be able to provide everything.
So, one of the terms of reference for the committee was to proffer a workable solution that can sustain the family and give them livelihood after the COVID-19 Pandemic. That is why government is given out maize grains to be planted.
This plant gets mature within three months, that can sustain a family at least at subsistence level. He also gave plantain suckers which when planted within 6-7 months it is due. The committee looked at both the short- and long-term effects of the pandemic and proffered solutions. The governor promised that he will surely implement every good recommendation by the committee.
What about the continuous closure of the livestock market in Akwa Ibom State by the government, is it in the benefit of farmers in the state?
Well, there is hope reopening it but let me tell you, His Excellency, President Buhari on June 12, 2020, recommended that people should eat what they produce and produce what they eat.
