Farmers paid N139m to harvest crops – Report

A new report by geopolitical research firm, S.B Morgen, has revealed that a minimum of 1,356 farmers have been killed, mainly in the Northern part of the country, between 2020 and 2024.

It also stated that N139m was paid as farm levies (including planting and harvesting) to bandits within the same period.

This was disclosed in a report detailing the impact of the ongoing #EndBadGovernance protest and the reasons for the severity of the protests in many northern states, which included heightened insecurity levels affecting many farming communities and an increase in the spate of hunger.

According to the report, between July 2023 and June 2024, the North experienced significantly more kidnappings, with over ten times the number of victims compared to the South.

It explained that as the region, which is responsible for supplying the country’s agricultural needs, farmers had faced multiple taxes imposed by bandit warlords operating in rural areas.

The report read, “Bandits and kidnappers have taken over large swathes of territory in the Northwest and Central regions.

“The North has suffered more kidnappings between July 2023 and June 2024, with more than ten times as many kidnap victims as the

South. As the area that supplies the country with its agricultural needs, its farmers have been subjected to multiple taxation by bandit warlords operating in rural areas.

“In early 2024, SBM found that no less than N139m was paid as farm levies (including planting and harvesting) to bandits who demanded at least N224m across the North between 2020 and 2023.

“In the same period leading up to June 2024, at least 1,356 farmers were killed across the country, with most of the killings occurring in the North. These illegal tolls have made it difficult for farmers to access their farms and added to the mounting food insecurity exacerbated by factors such as an unstable currency.”

It added that insecurity was the second most important issue facing farmers in the country, after poor road infrastructure.

The report mirrored a similar report earlier in the year, which stated that farmers in the North paid as much as N100,000 to access their farms and harvest.

Also, the report contained commentaries on the Russian flags that emerged in protest grounds, mainly in Kano, reminiscing sentiments of military coups that have become popular in recent times across West Africa, with neighbouring Niger Republic the latest casualty.

The severe insecurity in North-west Nigeria, a key food-producing region, has far-reaching effects on the economy.

It results in increased food prices, a shortfall in food supply, and discourages further investment in agricultural ventures.

Nigerians have been grappling with a food security crisis, with food inflation reaching 40.87 per cent as of June 2024.