A Professor of History at Bamidele Olumilua University of Education, Science and Technology, Prof Jonathan Familugba, has traced Nigeria’s food shortage to the neglect of the food crops subsector of the economy.
Speaking at the 7th inaugural lecture of BOUESTI in Ikere Ekiti on Tuesday, titled “Hunger in the Land: Agricultural Policies, Crop Production and the Historical Roots of Food Insecurity in Nigeria,” Familugba said Nigeria is naturally endowed to develop a viable agricultural economy and urged the government to resuscitate moribund farm settlement sites.
“The farm settlements came into existence then to transform the traditional farming system and educate peasant farmers on production through modern agricultural methods, accelerate agricultural development and proffer solutions to the high rate of unemployment among the teeming youth and to induce the young, educated and other jobless youths to make farming their profession,” he said.
Familugba noted that the farm settlement programme failed due to lack of continuity by successive governments, greed and corruption among handlers, and absence of visionary leadership to sustain agricultural policies.
He traced inadequate food supply to early post-independence policies favouring tree crops over food crops, inconsistent government programmes, the discovery of oil, low budgetary allocation to agriculture, and lack of modern technology.
To address the crisis, Familugba urged the government to implement bold, non-politicised policies to boost agricultural productivity.
“The Nigerian government, rather than politicising agric policy initiatives, should come out with bold policies to address the issue of agricultural productivity from a holistic perspective,” he said.
He recommended designing and implementing clear policies to drive agricultural growth, training and maximally utilising Agricultural Extension officers, and educating farmers regularly through seminars and workshops.
He further advised, “The government should encourage public-private partnership by creating the enabling environment for investors in the agricultural sector.
“It should do everything possible to guarantee the safety and security of farmers and their crops by putting a permanent end to the destruction of farm crops through farmers/herders clashes.”
On technology, Familugba said, “The pathway to real agricultural revolution in Nigeria is a breakthrough in the use of modern technology.
“We have to learn a lot from countries like the US, where only three per cent of the population is engaged in farming and is still able to feed the teeming population and can still export the surplus to other countries.”
He concluded that agriculture remained fundamental to Nigeria’s economic growth, tied to various sectors, and essential for broad-based development.
Farm settlements, initially established in the late 1950s and early 1960s, were government-designated areas aimed at boosting agriculture and reducing rural-urban migration.
Major sites are concentrated in the South-West, with others in the South-South and North.
Experts believe reviving these sites in modern ways could ensure food sufficiency and generate export opportunities.