Hannah Mgbede, 18 months old, asks her husband for permission to take a break from threshing rice in order to breastfeed their baby girl.
Ibrahim Mohammed, her husband, was 45 and used to harvest up to 10 bags of rice per year from his farm. After attackers set fire to his house, three bags of rice were left. This was after violence between farmers in the central and northwest regions of Nigeria escalated.
Mohammed is now unable to afford seedlings for soybeans, guinea corn, and yams (sorghum) because of the decreased yield.
Mohammed, a father of three children aged five and under, said that sometimes it is possible to eat only once a day. “Since the crisis it is only through the grace of God that we are feeding to stay alive.”
Benue was once home to huge harvests of rice and yams. But violence in recent years has reduced the yields in this northcentral state in Africa’s largest nation.
Officials claim that more than 1 million farmers have been forced from their land by the violence between farmers and herders.
Benue state governor says, “We are heading towards a food shortage.” Samuel Ortom spoke to The Associated Press.
According to the U.N. World Food Program, 13 million people in northern Nigeria are currently facing hunger during a lean season. Violence has also affected the sale of food, as farmers are unable to transport their crops on roads that are unsafe and markets have been destroyed by attackers.
The price of rice has increased more than 60% since the drop in production.
A spokesperson for the U.N agency stated that there is a real danger of famine due to conflict and COVID-19, which made it more difficult to reach those most needy.
In decades-long clashes over limited water and grazing land, thousands of Nigerians have been murdered. Farmers often accuse herders of invading their fields, while Fulani-ethnic herders claim that the croplands are their traditional grazing routes.
In the hope of ending the conflict that has been exacerbated by the proliferation and failure to prosecute those responsible for both sides, the government launched a National Livestock Transform Plan initiative.
Around 3,000 people fled violence in Benue State and now live in a Guma camp.
Mtongailiamgee (43), says that it is difficult to feed her 10 children every day. At 1 p.m., she was seen making their only meal of each day.
She says, “We live for today and we don’t know what tomorrow might bring.”
Felix Agune, deputy head of camp school, said that some children arrive at class crying because they haven’t had breakfast. The gap is being filled by non-governmental organizations, but this is nothing compared to the widespread hunger in Benue state,” stated Rex Elanu (a program director at the One to One Healthcare Initiative).
Officials from the government insist that they are trying to make farmlands safe for people to return to work on. So that they can be less hostile to farmers, they’re encouraging nomadic herders who want to start ranching.
According to a spokesperson for the ministry of agriculture, fertilizers and seeds have been provided to farmers to increase food production, mitigate the effects of the pandemic, and encourage more youths into agriculture.
Despite violence, Nigerian farmers were able to produce enough crops that they can provide staples like rice, cassava, and yams for the country.
Theodore Ogaziechi, the minister of agriculture, stated that Nigeria survived on the produce of smallholder farmers. “The farmers are trying their best to feed the nation.”
The governor of Benue state, Ortom, said that farmers are resilient, but they also fear for their lives because many have tried to return to their farms.
He stated that if there’s security for the farmers, we will continue to be the food basket nation. It is a huge challenge if it is not done now.
