Opinion
Of Poultry Farmers And Maize Scarcity
Farmers across the length and breadth of Nigeria have been groaning under persistent upward movement of prices of compounded feeds for animal consumption from less than N2,000, in the past ten weeks, to an average of N4,000. A statement issued by the Osun Chapter Chairman and Secretary of the Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN), Chief Oluyemi Olukiran and Dr Alaba Towoju, in Osogbo recently, disclosed that the maize price has increased by 100 per cent from N97/kg to N160/kg since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic in the country.
This, the Chairman, Poultry Association of Nigeria, Ogun State (PANOG), Mrs. Blessing Isioma Alawode, said, has cost more than 350,000 poultry farmers their jobs, while over 1,000 egg farmers have been forced out of business as a result of the increase in the prices of maize and other essential inputs.
From their analysis, the increase in the price of maize is to be blamed for the simultaneous increase in the price of compounded feeds over the same period. This is because cereals like Maize, Soya beans, Sorghum, Millets, Wheat, apart from being among the major staple food crops in most of sub-Saharan Africa, are consumed in a range of commercial sectors.
According to reports, about 50% of the maize produced is consumed by the animal feed sector, same goes to wheat, soya beans, and sorghum, with poultry claiming as much as 98% of the total feed. Maize is the second most cultivated crop in Nigeria, grown in diverse agro-ecological zones and farming systems, and consumed by people with varying food preferences and socio-economic backgrounds. Study shows that Nigeria is the second largest maize producer in Africa, after South Africa, with an estimated 10.79 million MT produced in 2014. The largest volumes of maize and other grains are produced in the northern region of Nigeria, particularly in Kaduna, Borno, Niger, and Taraba and the south-western states including Ogun, Ondo and Oyo.
However, the productivity of these crops has not kept pace with increasing demand, due mainly to environmental conditions and resource constraint, low-input farming systems, etc. It is further complicated by inavailability, Covid- 19, irregular rains and insurgency in the north, casting unquestionable doubt over their yields this year as a result of highly reduced planted averages. Normally, during the growing season, the prices of dry maize, wheat, millet and sorghum increase significantly due to demand by processors. Grain merchants in northern Nigeria store the maize during the peak of availability and sell at higher prices in off-season to food processors and feed mill operators.
But that has never been much of a problem until the envasion of the north by the Boko Haram insurgency, which has frustrated farming activities in the north, and the ban on importation of agricultural products by the Presidency. Maize thus, has become indispensible for food security in Nigeria.
A tonne of maize which used to sell for N97,000 has climbed to N165,000 per tonne while soybeans has increased from N110,000 per tonne to N123,000 within the last few months.
Suffice it to say that the rising cost of maize and soyabeans, as well as their attendant scarcity, potend serious threat to the nation’s food security not only to poultry farmers, but to other actors in the value chain as well.
In April this year, the Nigerian Institute of Animal Science (NIAS) registered its concern over a looming threat to the animal protein producing industry (poultry), but the society could not assess in concrete term, the enormity of its forecast.
At the dawn of the Covid-19 global pandemic, the body had appealed to the federal government to ensure that “the N16 trillion worth of investment in the poultry industry is not allowed to collapse amidst Covid-19 ravaging Nigeria and the world at large”.
NAIS was quick to dissect the unusually drastic measures adopted by the government to combat the global menace, as one that could threaten the sustenability of the poultry industry in the long run. In recognition of the importance of animal protein to human existence, it called on the government to ensure that the livestock industry was exempted from the restriction order imposed by government to reduce the pandemic in the country.
It minced no words in projecting the feed milling industry and hatcheries on which the poultry sub-sector depends, as the hub of its sustenability which viability at all times must not be compromised. This underscored their advocacy for personnel working in the livestock sector, to be allowed to move across state borders and within states upon proper identification.
NIAS’s intervention ordinarily, could best be interpreted as an early warning signal which, if adequately explored, could save unfortunate situations in the industry but has that actually been achieved? As we speak, a large number of small-scale poultry farms have closed as a result of exorbitant prices of critical ingredients in poultry feed formulation. A situation that is capable of eroding the benefits of the ban by the federal government on frozen chicken on the local industry if the exorbitant price of maize and soya beans, major components of poultry rations, is not checked.
Don’t forget that in the last two years, the local broiler industry has boomed with a positive effect on food sufficiency for Nigeria. This has been largely aided by the ban on imports of frozen chicken. We see this great achievement being rolled back if local broiler production is threatened.
However, the rising cost of maize is threatening livelihoods of small businesses in Nigeria. It is not only the poultry farmer’s investment that is threatened, other players in the value chain; feed producers, chicken, and egg vendors and processors, grain traders, veterinary and drug vendors, too thus plunging the economy into deeper crisis.
The writer opines that this emerging indispensable monster, can most suitably be checked by allowing importation of maize into Nigeria since our local maize farmers cannot meet up with the demand of maize required by maize consumers.
This, no doubt, will serve a short term recovery effort to bring the subsector back to its feet . Only importation will sustain the livestock business to tide over the imminent scarcity which will extend without doubt to later date.
By: Sylvia ThankGod-Amadi
From all indications, Nigeria possesses enough human and material resources to become a true economic powerhouse in Africa. According to the National Population Commission (NPC, 2023), the country’s population has grown steadily within the last decade, presently standing at about 220 million people—mostly young, vibrant, and innovative. Nigeria also remains the sixth-largest oil producer in the world, with enormous reserves of gas, fertile agricultural land, and human capital.
Yet, despite this enormous potential, the country continues to grapple with underdevelopment, poverty, unemployment, and insecurity. Recent data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS, 2023) show that about 129 million Nigerians currently live below the poverty line. Most families can no longer afford basic necessities, even as the government continues to project a rosy economic picture.
The Subsidy Question
The removal of fuel subsidy in 2023 by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has been one of the most controversial policy decisions in Nigeria’s recent history. According to the president, subsidy removal was designed to reduce fiscal burden, unify the foreign exchange rate, attract investment, curb inflation, and discourage excessive government borrowing.
While these objectives are theoretically sound, the reality for ordinary Nigerians has been severe hardship. Fuel prices more than tripled, transportation costs surged, and food inflation—already high—rose above 30% (NBS, 2023). The World Bank (2023) estimates that an additional 7.1 million Nigerians were pushed into poverty after subsidy removal.
A Critical Economic View
As an economist, I argue that the problem was not subsidy removal itself—which was inevitable—but the timing, sequencing, and structural gaps in Nigeria’s implementation.
- Structural Miscalculation
Nigeria’s four state-owned refineries remain nonfunctional. By removing subsidies without local refining capacity, the government exposed the economy to import-price pass-through effects—where global oil price shocks translate directly into domestic inflation. This was not just a timing issue but a fundamental policy miscalculation.
- Neglect of Social Safety Nets
Countries like Indonesia (2005) and Ghana (2005) removed subsidies successfully only after introducing cash transfers, transport vouchers, and food subsidies for the poor (World Bank, 2005). Nigeria, however, implemented removal abruptly, shifting the fiscal burden directly onto households without protection.
- Failure to Secure Food and Energy Alternatives
Fuel subsidy removal amplified existing weaknesses in agriculture and energy. Instead of sequencing reforms, government left Nigerians without refinery capacity, renewable energy alternatives, or mechanized agricultural productivity—all of which could have cushioned the shock.
Political and Public Concerns
Prominent leaders have echoed these concerns. Mr. Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, described the subsidy removal as “good but wrongly timed.” Atiku Abubakar of the People’s Democratic Party also faulted the government’s hasty approach. Human rights activists like Obodoekwe Stive stressed that refineries should have been made functional first, to reduce the suffering of citizens.
This is not just political rhetoric—it reflects a widespread economic reality. When inflation climbs above 30%, when purchasing power collapses, and when households cannot meet basic needs, the promise of reform becomes overshadowed by social pain.
Broader Implications
The consequences of this policy are multidimensional:
- Inflationary Pressures – Food inflation above 30% has made nutrition unaffordable for many households.
- Rising Poverty – 7.1 million Nigerians have been newly pushed into poverty (World Bank, 2023).
- Middle-Class Erosion – Rising transport, rent, and healthcare costs are squeezing household incomes.
- Debt Concerns – Despite promises, government borrowing has continued, raising sustainability questions.
- Public Distrust – When government promises savings but citizens feel only pain, trust in leadership erodes.
In effect, subsidy removal without structural readiness has widened inequality and eroded social stability.
Missed Opportunities
Nigeria’s leaders had the chance to approach subsidy removal differently:
- Refinery Rehabilitation – Ensuring local refining to reduce exposure to global oil price shocks.
- Renewable Energy Investment – Diversifying energy through solar, hydro, and wind to reduce reliance on imported petroleum.
- Agricultural Productivity – Mechanization, irrigation, and smallholder financing could have boosted food supply and stabilized prices.
- Social Safety Nets – Conditional cash transfers, food vouchers, and transport subsidies could have protected the most vulnerable.
Instead, reform came abruptly, leaving citizens to absorb all the pain while waiting for theoretical long-term benefits.
Conclusion: Reform With a Human Face
Fuel subsidy removal was inevitable, but Nigeria’s approach has worsened hardship for millions. True reform must go beyond fiscal savings to protect citizens.
Economic policy is not judged only by its efficiency but by its humanity. A well-sequenced reform could have balanced fiscal responsibility with equity, ensuring that ordinary Nigerians were not crushed under the weight of sudden change.
Nigeria has the resources, population, and resilience to lead Africa’s economy. But leadership requires foresight. It requires policies that are inclusive, humane, and strategically sequenced.
Reform without equity is displacement of poverty, not development. If Nigeria truly seeks progress, its policies must wear a human face.
References
- National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). (2023). Poverty and Inequality Report. Abuja.
- National Population Commission (NPC). (2023). Population Estimates. Abuja.
- World Bank. (2023). Nigeria Development Update. Washington, DC.
- World Bank. (2005). Fuel Subsidy Reforms: Lessons from Indonesia and Ghana. Washington, DC.
- OPEC. (2023). Annual Statistical Bulletin. Vienna.
By: Amarachi Amaugo