Smallholder farmers in Abuja rue lack of access to agricultural credit facilities and absence of government support.
eremiah Yunanna ekes out a living as a smallholder farmer planting maize, beans, yam and other crops in Byazhin, a rural community in the Kubwa outskirts of Abuja. But Mr Yunanna said life has become harder for himself and members of his family due to dwindling yields from his farm and the rising cost of living in Nigeria. He said he had been unable to reverse his situation because every time that he pursued government financing programmes, his efforts had been futile.
“I don’t have money to expand my farming business, and this has made things difficult for me and my family,” Mr. Yunanna said. “We struggle to feed because I cannot afford fertilizer or improved seedlings which would have improved my yields. For instance, I have not been feeling well for some months now, but I cannot go to the hospital because I don’t have money.
And according to data released by ActionAid, a non-governmental organisation working in Nigeria to tackle poverty and injustice, less than 23 per cent of smallholder farmers in Nigeria have access to agricultural credit.
The inability of smallholder farmers in local communities to access credit has made them more susceptible to the rising costs of living just as many struggles with malnutrition, ulcer among others as a result of hunger and related concerns.According to Louise Milan, Head of the Screening Unit at the Byazhi Primary Health Centre, the number of ulcer cases recorded at the facility was increasing on a daily basis.
“I have been looking for an agricultural loan or grant from the government, but I have not been successful despite trying repeatedly,” Mrs Ebere said.“I want to expand my poultry farm but I don’t have money to do so. I have reduced the size of the farm due to the high cost of poultry feed. My poultry business is what has been supporting the family but now, nothing much is coming out from the business.
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