Farmers decry hikes in prices of fertiliser

Dry season farmers in Hadejia, Jigawa, on Sunday expressed worry over hikes in the prices of fertiliser due to its scarcity.

The farmers told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Hadejia that the trend was seriously affecting agricultural activities.

Malam Musa Muhammad, a wheat grower, said he was experiencing difficulties in sourcing for the commodity due to the exorbitant market prices.

Muhammad said a bag of assorted fertiliser attracts as much as N6,500 in an open market.

He said the situation was discouraging as farmers began cultivation for the dry season, adding, ``the price of fertiliser is too high and it might affect productivity.’’

NAN investigation, however, revealed that a bag of NPK and Urea brand of fertiliser were sold for between N4,500 and N6,000 in the local market.

A rice farmer, Malam Yusha’u Abdu, attributed the hikes to the inability of the government to supply the commodity directly to farmers.

Abdu said farmers were accessing the commodity at the markets, a trend which forced prices up.

``In the past, the government under Gross Enhancement Support (GES) programme, distributed fertiliser and seedlings to farmers at subsidised rate.

``We call for the review and expansion of the programme to enhance farmer access to fertiliser and inputs,’’ he said.

GES is a critical component of Agriculture Transformation Agenda (ATA) initiated by former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration.

The programme, otherwise called e-wallet, was designed to ensure prompt supply of fertiliser and inputs to farmer via Short Messages Service (SMS).

According to statistics from the Jigawa chapter of the Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN), more than 150,000 registered farmers benefited from the GES programme in the state.