As the wet season approaches, farmers in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) are calling on Minister Nyesom Wike to prioritize inputs subsidy to avoid the challenges faced during the last planting season.
Despite the minister’s efforts to open up rural areas, farmers rated him low in agriculture last year.
Mr. Joseph Shekwoyi, a crop farmer in Bwari, highlighted the struggles farmers faced in accessing affordable farm inputs.
“Many of the farmers have no money to buy improved maize, cowpea, millet seeds. Most of us were forced to make use of the traditional seeds we are used to, but those seeds don’t give good yields per hectare these days,” he said.
Mallam Abubakar Yunusa, a rice farmer, echoed similar concerns, emphasizing the need for affordable inputs like fertilizers and agrochemicals.
“How much do you think you can get 50kg of Faro 44 rice seeds now? This is in thousands of naira, many of the farmers couldn’t afford that. This is where we expect the minister to come to our aid,” he said.
Mrs. Modupe Ige, a vegetable farmer in the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), urged the minister to subsidize fertilizers and other inputs to enable farmers to cultivate more arable lands.
“The minister is trying in the area of access roads in the rural communities. But if you are doing all these without paying attention to the real production, I don’t think we are doing anything yet,” she said.
Joshua Gana, a farmer in Gwagwalada, suggested that the minister consider providing tractors and harvesters for farmers’ groups to increase mechanization and yields.
In response to the farmers’ concerns, a senior official at the FCT Agricultural and Rural Development Secretariat assured that the administration would distribute inputs to farmers early this year, capturing more farmers, especially in rural communities.
