Nation

Agriculture To The Rescue

Published

2 years ago

July 26, 2023

Who says something good will not come out of the current economic crisis in the country? If not for anything, the dwindling oil revenue has forced many people and indeed the nation in general to consider going back to agriculture. Before the discovery of oil in 1958, agriculture was the country’s economic mainstay with different regions boasting of different cash crops like groundnut, cocoa, rubber palm oil produce and many more, thus making agriculture a main source of employment, income and foreign exchange earnings for the nation.Today, with its abundant arable land and over 160 million people, Nigeria cannot feed its citizens not to talk of exporting to other lands. Successive administrations at both federal and state levels have claimed to be investing in agriculture with little or noting to show for it. Rather, the country has become one of the largest importers of food in the world. All kinds of good items from all over the world find their way into the Nigeria. We import wheat, sugar, fish, milk, vegetables, fruits, rice and other food items which could be abundantly produced locally.
Incidentally, the constant plummeting of the naira has sky-rocketed the prices of virtually every item in the market. The result is that many Nigerians today go hungry. The recent stories of how people steal cooked food, abandon their children at shops in exchange for food items are indications of how bad the situation has become. And the only remedy is agriculture. Some stakeholders in the agriculture sector have posited that with over 79 million hectares of arable land, diversified ecological conditions, abundant water resources and adequate rainfall and sincere commitment by government, poverty, joblessness, and hunger will be completely eliminated in the country.That is why the effort of some state governments towards improving agriculture must be commended. Sometime in 2016, Benue state government approved the declaration of every Friday as a work-free day to enable workers in the state work in their farms.
The objective was to enable as many workers as possible to produce food to feed their families, given the economic downturn in the country which has made regular payment of salaries in some of the states of the federation a major challenge. This is indeed a good initiative which should be emulated by other governors. They have a lot to do to steer their states away from the monthly handouts from Abuja. Virtually every state in the country is blessed with one natural endowment or the other, which if properly harnessed and utilised will impact positively on the people. Why then do our governors wait on Abuja for handout?
The point is, now that there is no money in the country even to pay salaries, our leaders should think of ways of harnessing our natural resources to make life better for the country. It is high time we began to think of life without crude oil. We succeeded without oil before, we can do it again. Let every state governor encourage their people to go back to agriculture. Reports have it that many civil servants in Ekiti State have toed the Benue line by returning to their villages to farm. Anambra and Akwa Ibom states are also said to be presently producing tomatoes in very large qualities. That is the way to go.
Many countries had used a similar situation we are in now to turn their fortunes around and we can do it if only we are able to reduce our dependence on crude oil and focus on other lucrative sectors like agriculture.
Government should therefore, encourage farming by providing modern farming implements to farmers to boost their production. A situation where most farmers still rely on crude farming implements like hoes and cutlasses is most discouraging.
Farmers who are willing to expand their farms often complain of lack of support from banks. Unless this problem is solved and provision of soft loans to farmers is made possible, our dream of having a thriving agriculture sector may not be realised.
Recall that some Benue State civil servants at a point formed cooperatives, and loans were given to only groups that had verifiable farms. Such measures should be adopted by other states to ensure that only real farmers and those truly interested in farming received support.
Provision of power, accessible roads and good transport system is also paramount. Many farm products perish in villages due to non-availability of access roads and transport system to bring them to the cities’ consumers. And yet, there is no storage facilities.
There is indeed need for federal, states as well as individuals to show more commitment to agriculture if the on-going hunger in the land will be quelled. The time of paying lip service to agriculture ought to be over. Individual cooperative societies, clubs and other stake holders should invest in agriculture. This will not only assure on adequate food supply in the country, but will also create jobs for our teeming unemployed youths, reduce rates of social vices and crimes associated with unemployment.
However, one thing is certain, without peace and security in our rural communities there can be no development.
Farming and other agricultural activities which largely take place in the villages cannot thrive if the constant killings, kidnapping, cult war, Boko Haram activities, cattle rearers’ disturbances and other crimes perpetuated in our communities are not curtailed.
Nigeria can regain her pride as the food basket of Africa if the right measures are taken to revive the agriculture sector. President Buhari promised during his electioneering campaign that he would pay adequate attention to agriculture. The time to do that is now, so that Nigerians can have food to eat.

by: Calista Ezeaku

Nation

Nasarawa Varsity Student Commits Suicide

Published

6 hours ago

May 1, 2025

The Tide

A 23-year-old student of Nasarawa State University identified as Jatau Rilokwah, has been reportedly found dead in the university’s senior staff quarters.
A counter-insurgency expert, focused on the Lake Chad region, Zagazola Makama, disclosed this on his X handle on Tuesday.
According to him, the discovery was made on April 27, 2025, by a security officer at the university, Emmanuel Gyawo.
He stated that Gwayo was directed by Prof. Shedrack Jatau to check on his son upon arriving at the residence, and he found Rilokwah hanging from the ceiling.
“Professor Jatau, who was reportedly out of the State at the time, was informed of the incident. A team of police detectives, led by the Divisional Crime Officer of Angwan Lambu, was dispatched to the scene.
“The body showed no signs of violence, and no suicide note was found. Rilokwah was rushed to the Federal Medical Centre in Keffi, where he was confirmed dead by a medical doctor,” he further stated.
He added that the student’s corpse had been deposited in the hospital morgue.
He also quoted police sources as saying that investigations were ongoing to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident.

Nation

Ogun, Nike Art Gallery Set To Transform Olumo Rock

Published

6 hours ago

May 1, 2025

The Tide

The Ogun State Government has partnered with Nike Art Gallery to establish a new exhibition space at the Olumo Rock Tourist Centre in Abeokuta, a move Governor Dapo Abiodun says is aimed at boosting annual tourist visits from 20,000 to over 100,000.
Abiodun disclosed the plan on Wednesday while receiving the founder of the Nike Art Gallery, Chief (Mrs) Nike Davies-Okundaye, at his office in Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta.
“I went to Olumo Rock about a month ago and I decided that we needed to do something about restoring Olumo Rock to its old glory. From statistics, Olumo Rock hosts about 20,000 people a year in its current state, and I felt that we could increase that to at least ten times,” the governor said.
As part of the plan, an events hall within the tourist centre will be repurposed as a permanent gallery operated by Nike Art Gallery.
“I told them to shut it down. Practically, we want to bring it down and turn it into a gallery for you to use as an exhibition gallery,” he told Davies-Okundaye.
He added that the gallery will be ready before the National Sports Festival in May, when the State will host about 15,000 visitors.
“I want them to be able to see our tourist sites,” he said, listing attractions such as the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library, the Ransome-Kuti family home, and the Adire market among key heritage spots to be showcased.
Highlighting Ogun’s improved infrastructure, the governor said, “Now that we’ve succeeded in having the intra and inter-state roads in place, you can come to Ogun State by rail; you can come by air. We’ve constructed one of the best airports in Nigeria, and very soon, you will be able to come by sea.”
Davies-Okundaye, in her remarks, praised the state’s efforts to promote tourism and pledged to use the new gallery to attract global attention.
“This gallery will bring many Heads of State. The one I opened in Abuja already has more than 10 Heads of State, including those from South Korea and the Czech Republic. The same will happen here,” she said.
She also applauded the Governor for his commitment to the Adire fabric industry.
“Adire is all over Nigeria, but Ogun has been promoting Adire for over 50 years. Today, the only cloth we can call our own is called Adire. This is what we can sell to the Europeans,” she said.
Abiodun reaffirmed his administration’s backing of the Adire industry, citing policies such as the Adire Ogun Digital Marketplace, compulsory wearing of Adire in the state, and provision of solar-powered production equipment to support artisans.
He also revealed plans to open a creative arts and entertainment village in partnership with Bolanle Austen-Peters, expected to be completed within two months.

Nation

CBEX Resumes Operations Despite SEC Ban, N1.2trn EFCC Probe

Published

6 hours ago

May 1, 2025

The Tide

Despite the alleged N1.2 trillion digital trading fraud that reportedly affected over 600,000 Nigerians, the embattled Crypto Bridge Exchange trading platform, accused of these acts, has resumed operations, announcing fresh withdrawal options in a move to restore investor confidence.
Two traders on the CBEX platform confirmed to The Tide’s source that the digital trading firm has quietly resumed operations, allowing new users to register, trade, and withdraw profits, despite ongoing investigations by regulatory agencies.
According to the sources, an insurance verification process and an external audit of the company’s financial records are currently underway to ascertain the actual amount lost in the scheme, which collapsed in April.
They added that existing investors, many of whom have been unable to access their funds for weeks, will be able to take out their funds starting from June 25, 2025, when the audit is expected to be concluded by an insurance firm based in the United Kingdom.
This development comes barely weeks after the Securities and Exchange Commission declared the platform illegal, and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission confirmed an ongoing investigation into the firm’s operations.
CBEX, a digital investment platform, offered investors 100 per cent profit after 30 days of purported AI trading. The trading platform started operations in 2024 after receiving registration approval from the Corporate Affairs Commission on September 25, 2024, and the EFCC’s Special Control Unit Against Money Laundering on January 16, 2025.
No fewer than 600,000 Nigerians reportedly invested in the scheme and lost N1.2tn after it collapsed on April 14, 2025.
Miffed by the development, the EFCC declared eight persons wanted for promoting the programme. They include Johnson Oteno, Israel Mbaluka, Joseph Michiro, Serah Michiro, Adefowora Olanipekun, Adefowora Oluwanisola, Emmanuel Uko, and Seyi Oloyede.