Time for large-scale irrigation
Upscale food, cash-crop production
THE NATIONAL BUREAU OF STATISTICS in its recent national economic data report confirmed that the Nigerian economy has officially slumped into full-blown recession as the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), an indicator for tracking the status of a country’s...
THE NATIONAL BUREAU OF STA TISTICS in its recent national economic data report confirmed that the Nigerian economy has officially slumped into fullblown recession as the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), an indicator for tracking the status of a country’s economy, suffered a -3.62 per cent Year-on-Year decline in Q3 2020, its second consecutive fall after the -6.10 per cent recorded in the preceding quarter, Q2 2020.
Though accusations have been flung at the covid-19 pandemic and the crash in global price of crude oil, which have adversely affected the country’s earning power, experts have asserted that the country’s troubled state is not a period for excuses, regrets and accusations, rather, it is a realisation that the economy is swinging on a troubled scale and in dire need of resuscitation.
To cushion the agonising effects of the recession, economic analysts have called for an exploration of control measures; and one of the opportunities that sits on the peak of the exploration log is ‘agriculture’. This is because agriculture is thought of as one of the most viable sectors capable of creating increased export earnings, employment and of course, food security. This suggestion is buoyed by the agriculture sector’s 30.77 per cent contribution to overall GDP in real terms in Q3 2020 (as presented by the National Bureau of Statistics) which is comparatively higher than any other sector of the economy.
On this note, public analysts, most especially agriculture actors and stakeholders have charged the government to as a matter of urgency, map out strategic plans to scale-up agricultural production all year round, regardless of climatic conditions, and one significant measure suggested to effectively boost agriculture production in the country is ‘large-scale irrigation farming ’ especially at a period when rainfall, an essential bolster to agriculture is leaning towards uncertainty and global warming is fast becoming a serious cause for concern.
Nigeria’s expansive irrigation capacity
The Food and Agriculture Organisation in its assessment of Nigeria’s irrigation capacity noted that an estimate of 286.2 km3 of renewable water resources are produced annually. Of this, about 214Km3 make up surface water while the exploitable surface flow is about 96km3 per year and the volume of available groundwater is about 87km3.
It also noted that the country’s groundwater is further distributed into provinces which include; Chad Basin, Sokoto Basin, Middle Niger Basin, Anambra Basin and Benue Basin.
The FAO further disclosed that the surface water resource can be assessed by the major drainage basins which include; Niger Basin, Lake Chad Basin, the West Coast and West Central Basins.
More so, the Niger River, though shared by eleven countries, is most beneficial to Nigeria as an estimated 26 per cent of its drainage lies within its boundaries. The river is also home to Kainji, Shiroro and Jebba, Nigeria’s three major dams.
Other perennial rivers that serve drainage include; the Gongola (north-eastern Nigeria), Hadejia-Jama’are, Kaduna, Yobe, Zamfara rivers in the North, and the Anambra, Cross (Oyono), Imo, Ogun and Osun rivers in the South.
The Federal Ministry of Water Resources (FMWR), in a 2017 statement noted that there are about 264 dams with a combined storage capacity of 33 billion m3 litres of water for multipurpose use that includes, water supply, irrigation, hydropower, fisheries and eco-tourism, of which 210 are owned by the federal government, 34 by states and 20 by private organisations. The ministry also noted that these dams have a combined capacity of about 350,000 hectares of irrigable land around the vicinities ready for development.
The readily available water resources and dams portrays Nigeria as a potentially endowed country where irrigation can be effectively harnessed if the proper management schemes are put into operation.
A report by the Nigerian National Commission on Irrigation and Drainage (NINCID) showed that the total arable land in Nigeria is about 34.6 million hectares. However, only 40 per cent is under cultivation out of which less than five per cent is irrigated. The statistic presents an indication that the country’s agriculture/ irrigation level is operating way below capacity.
Challenges hindering implementation of irrigation projects
Adekunle Oluwasegun, a professor of agricultural extension and rural development at the University of Ilorin, in a study conducted in 2015, discovered that poor knowledge of irrigation techniques among the farmers was one of the factors affecting their participation in large-scale irrigation schemes.
According to him, the farmers were not interested in the operation and maintenance of the large-scale irrigation facilities, while those that managed to participate were not equipped with the requisite knowledge for the operations and maintenance of the facilities. This problem, he posited, is one of the current challenges being faced by the large-scale irrigation scheme in Nigeria as the participating farmers see the facilities as government properties, which should be maintained by the government. He explained that these do not only make the equipment short-lived but have also resulted in the abandonment of irrigation schemes due to lack of irrigation equipment and infrastructure.
A rice farmer based in Kebbi State, who chose to speak under anonymity, said the government’s inability to invest in irrigation facilities is one of the major factors responsible for the high cost of local rice. He explained that rice is a crop that needs sufficient water to generate ample production and until attention is shifted from rain-fed farming to extensive irrigation farming, the rice sector will continue to suffer a short-fall in supply.
According to a report by the World Bank, Nigeria irrigation development has been hindered by inconsistent and unstable policies and inappropriate legal framework over the years resulting in incomplete projects and inconsistent policies. The report stated that the Federal Ministry of Water Resources (FMWR), the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD), state irrigation departments, and River Basin Development Authorities (RBDAs), have variant duties regarding the irrigation development in Nigeria but rather than complement one another to ensure sustainability of water resources for agriculture and consumption in Nigeria, the ministries and the respective agencies have resulted to a competition among one another which resulted to a fragmented and conflicting approach to irrigation development in the country.
Furthermore, overestimation of construction cost, high overhead and management cost, inaccurate irriga
tion cost/benefit analysis, and technical and management problems are some of the factors considered by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). IFAD asserted that many of these irrigation projects have deemed irrigation projects much more expensive than they actually are leading to ‘white elephant’ projects, which more often than not, discourages implementation.
Government’s implementation and policies towards extensive irrigation farming
Speaking on the government’s effort towards promoting irrigation projects, Suleiman Adamu, minister of water resources, explained that the River Basin Development Authorities (RBDAs) are the most imperative agencies to facilitate national food security and foster employment opportunities and they are being revived to deliver optimal results.
Adamu further stated that the ministry is working towards expanding hectares for irrigation at Ejule-Ojebe, Kogi State; Bakalori irrigation scheme, Zamfara State; Gari irrigation project, Kano; Hadejia Valley irrigation scheme, Jigawa State and also, rehabilitation of the Duku-Lade irrigation project in Kwara State.
The minister also stressed that the process of partial commercialisation of four pilot RBDAs (Ogun-Osun, Niger-Delta, Upper Niger and Sokoto-Rima) is in progress.
According to the minister, the Federal Ministry of Water Resources has partnered with the World Bank on a programme themed, ‘Transforming Irrigation Management in Nigeria (TRIMMING)’. The four-year contract funded by the World Bank is aimed at empowering over 130,000 farmers within four rehabilitated irrigation schemes in Northern Nigeria. The irrigation schemes include: Bakolori Irrigation scheme, Zamfara State; Hadejia Valley Irrigation scheme, Jigawa State; Middle Rima Irrigation scheme, Sokoto State and the Kano Irrigation scheme, Kano State. The programme also targets providing technical assistance at each irrigation scheme, establishing Farmers’ Management and Service Delivery Center (FMSDC), establishing a structured market for project marketed commodities, providing improved access to financing for inputs and mechanisation services for at least, 60 per cent of targeted farmers and facilitating forward and backward linkages along the value chains.
Peter Manjuk, head of the Project Management Unit stated that the key objective of the project is to boost access to irrigation and
drainage services and foster agriculture service delivery in selected large-scale public schemes. This, he explained, will help to increase agricultural productivity of the irrigated lands.
Paving the way for largescale irrigation farming
The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) pointed at the need to develop low cost water and soil conservation technologies, which include improved water harvesting in the areas with high rainfall. The international institute also called for an urgent need to improve the traditional irrigation schemes for application in the production of staple food crops, notably rice, vegetables and tuber crops.
“In order to achieve her food security targets, the country must introduce the use of small farmer owned sprinkler systems which could assist in boosting cash crops production. Nigeria has to shift emphasis towards rehabilitation and modernisation of existing irrigation systems but the cycle of construction-deterioration-rehabilitation has to be broken through greater mobilisation of resources from the farmers, to ensure adequate operation and maintenance,” it stated further.
Adekunle Oluwasegun is of the view that the attitudes and interests of the participating farmers have a larger role to play when it comes to Nigeria irrigation farming. He suggests that the government and agencies in charge of the irrigation systems need to be proactive in discharging their duties and correspondingly provide a platform to encourage and sensitize the farmers on the need to engage in irrigation farming during the dry season.
Francis Nwilene, regional coordinator, Africa Rice Centre, IITA, Ibadan, suggests that the agriculture ministry should devote more resources to the construction of farm irrigation facilities and dams which should not be limited to the northern zones alone, but spread across the country. He also called on state governors from the southern region to complement the ministry’s work through partnership to develop and expand river basins facilities for maximum food production.
Irrigation, he explained, is a panacea to the annual cycle of rain uncertainty and offers the boost the agriculture sector needs to become active all year round rather than rain-dependent.
“Expanding small-scale irrigation is a prerequisite towards assuring more sustainable and equitable agricultural growth in the country.” he added.