Hamza Idris
4 November 2007
Damaturu — Memories of the not too long devastating flood which washed away many families and farmlands across different parts of the world, linger in the minds of many.
With the floods cutting across many countries, the seeming apprehension was that the world would face shortage of food. The scenario was expected to prey heavily on low income earners, over anticipated inflation.
Nigeria is apparently not an exception to this fear because it had its fair share of the flood disaster. This is because out of its 36 states, those that did not experience the negative consequences of the ravaging rains may be counted at finger tips.
In Yobe the state, one of the worste hit by the floods in the country, stakes were high, hopes dashed; many were griped by trauma as many houses and farmlands were destroyed. Almost all the 17 local government areas have been affected in one way or the other by the popular flood. Expectedly, there are presumptions from many quarters that "food would not be available for the people to eat, preserve some and sell large quantities to prospective buyers".
While the state government may not have had any premonition that the last farming season would be punctured by flood, the increasing challenges posed by youth unemployment and increase in crime rate saw the birth of an initiative known as the Yobe Youth Empowerment Farm Project (YYEFM), which from all indications has turned out to be a blessing for the government, the youth and the people of Yobe state as it may reverse the fear of food shortage in the state.
The project, which was probably the "first big" initiative of Governor Mamman Ali when he assumed office in May 2007 saw the investment of N70 million into a 1000 virgin land along the Damaturu-Potiskum road with the hope of engaging about 1000 youths in the agricultural endeavour.
The aim, according to the governor, was to take "teeming youths off the streets and create wealth". Ali, who spoke during the launch of the project, described youth unemployment as "worrisome and unacceptable". He said his administration had resolved to provide all the necessary inputs for the smooth take off of the project which according to him will increase food production and generate revenue for the people.
He said it is the responsibility of the government to engage the youth in productive ventures "especially agriculture because our state has fertile land that is suitable for agricultural purposes".
He said apart from cash and food crops production, the beneficiaries would also be trained to engage in livestock and fish farming adding that the initiative would be extended to the 17 local government areas of the state as according to him, the target in the first phase of the project was to engage 5000 jobless youths. He added that in order to make the project all encompassing, women and adults who have no jobs would also benefit.
At the take off of the programme, about 500 youths and adults who were presented letters of identification from their ward heads were offered one hectre of cleared land each. This was followed by the presentation of seedlings, fertilizer and pesticides among others all for free. In the work plan of the farm, it was estimated that the sum of N70, 000 would be spent on each hectare of land.
Few month after the commencement of the project, Kanem Trust reports that many youths and adults have begun harvesting food and cash crops even though there are associated problems which if not properly tackled, would turn the dream of the farm into a mirage.
Some of the crops planted in the large farm so far include: millet, sorghum, beans and water melon and the harvest of some of the produce would commence soon. Other crops such as gum Arabic and neem tree which would cover the farm against excessive sun heat and desert encroachment are underway.
The farm manager, Alhaji Adamu Sale who is also the general manager of the Yobe State Agricultural Mechanization Authority (YOSAMA) had last week distributed N10, 000 to some of the farmers each in order to facilitate harvesting and packaging activities. The governor had also during a visit to the farm promised boreholes in order to accelerate dry season farming.
In addition to that, the sum of N303 million had been earmarked for farmers from the youth farm and others from the 17 local government areas in the state to supply their excess grains to the government as part of its "buffer stock strategy". The commissioner for Agriculture, Alkali Abdulkadir Jajere said the state executive council had approved the release of the money adding that "the grains would be stored at some of our designated grain stores and later sold to farmers at a subsidized rate".
The gesture according to him was to curtail the loss incurred by farmers who sold their produce at a give away price in open markets immediately after harvest. "We would give our farmers a good prices so as to encourage them produce more next farming season", he said adding that the wisdom of the policy was to discourage farmers from concentrating on "subsistence farming alone".
The commissioner who dismissed fears of poor harvest in Yobe state this year as a result of floods that ravaged thousands of farmlands said findings by his ministry showed that farmers would have surplus from their farms.
"The grains would also be used for emergency relief materials following disasters or poor harvest on the part of the farmers in the future", he said. With more than 80% of Yobe's population of 2.3 million actively engaged in farming, the Agriculture commissioner said no investment in the sector is big because as "that is what offers employment and everything to our people".
Jajere said adequate arrangements had been concluded for commercial farming activities including irrigation in the state. "The total procurement of fertilizer by the ministry of Agriculture in Yobe this year stood at 39, 796 metric tones. The fertilizer has a total value of (N1, 755, 832, and 000)", he said. He disclosed that subsidies given to farmers on the fertilizer amounted to N697, 384, 000.
Even though most of the measures taken by the government to revamp the agricultural sector look very impressive, findings by Kanem Trust show that radical measures must be taken in order to meet the desired objectives.
For instance, many youths and political associates of those in authority who were offered parcels of land at the youth empowerment farm have since deserted them after collecting the initial incentives.
Secondly, those who stood behind and cultivated the plots allocated to them cried that they had gone through untold hardship during their three-month stay on the farms. Many of them said they were shortchanged by those handling the activities of the farm.
One of them, Bilal M. Ma'aji (28) said, "the farm is very far from the town. You can imagine traveling about 15 kilometers to get to the farm throughout the rainy season. At the beginning, we were told that we would be paid transportation allowance but you can see that it is only today that we got something from them".
Another one Mohammed Modu Ishaq said he spends between N100 and N150 to get to the farm. "I planted soghum and beans on one hectare but was given only two bags of fertilizer. I hope they would reorganise the manner they distribute the farm inputs", he suggested.
Again, the damage done to the farm by monkeys and other bush animals would render the produce useless if nothing is done. Our reporter gathered that a vast watermelon farm was damaged by monkeys. Observers say the best for the farm is complete fencing since its being envisioned to be a long lasting legacy for the generations yet to come.
On his part, the farm manager, Alhaji Adamu Sani described the farm "as a break through" adding that the delays in paying the beneficiaries their entitlements was to ascertain those who really wanted to farm. "As you can see, it is only the real farmers that received N10, 000 each today, more than three months after the commencement of the farm. We deliberately did this so as to send away the unserious ones".
But findings by our reporter during the distribution of the N10, 000 to the farmers showed that a lot need to be done in order to maintain prudence and accountability in handling the finances of the farm. For instance, while the payment list shows that about 521 people would be paid, less than 150 were present at the distribution venue. More worrisome perhaps was that the youth were just paid without calling their names or ticking the names of those who had collected in the register. It was much later that the youth were asked to come and answer their names; a development which many said was akin to setting the cart before the horse.
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