Farming: Agric expert tasks govt on security

From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja

An agriculturist, Oluwasegun Alabi, has tasked the Federal Government to address the spate of insecurity in the country, so as to enable more farmers return to farms.

Alabi, who stated this, while briefing House of Representatives correspondents, on the potentials in agriculture, while the government wants people to return the farm, a lot of persons cannot because of insecurity.

He noted that “we want people to go to the farm, but a lot of people can’t go to farm again,” and expressed optimism that if farm land is secured, more farmers will be confident to return to farms and the country will be better for it.

Alabi, chief executive officer of Davidorlah Farms, stated that “in  2023, the value of agricultural imports exceeded exports by N1.037 trillion, marking the fifth consecutive year of such a loss.

“This imbalance is primarily due to the importation of processed and finished food products, such as wheat, sugar, concentrate to mention a few, which Nigeria has the capacity to produce domestically. Oil may be Nigeria’s top source of foreign income, but agriculture is quietly rising as a powerful force.

“With Nigeria ranking fourth in the world for exports like cocoa etc, there’s huge potential waiting to be unlocked. Yet, we still import a lot of food, a sign that our farms need more support and better infrastructure.”

He stated that Davidorlah Farms,  as part of its contribution to the agriculture sector, is investing in farmers training and helping to  bridge the gap between traditional practices and modern agribusiness.

According to him, Davidorlah Farms not only boosts food production and quality but also plans on empowering thousands of smallholder farmers with access to better markets, knowledge, and income.”