A young farmer in Kano, Abdulsalamu Junaidu was hopeful of achieving his goals of life through the investment he made in his tomato farm during the semi-dry season farming. He was motivated by the positive outcome of the yield, which was a result of his tireless efforts of frequent monitoring of his farm and spending over N1 million on less than two hectares of farmland.
With the positive outcomes from the farm, Junaidu, a resident of Bunkure local government area of the state was expecting a profit of not less than N4 million from the farm. “I thought it was my time to invest in the business I have been dreaming of doing. I wanted to establish a rice processing company.”
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However, the farmer’s hope diminished following an outbreak of a disease, ‘Tuta Absoluta’ that wiped away the entire farmland. He could not harvest one basket of the tomatoes, which was sold at N27,000 then. He was expected to harvest at least N500,000 tomatoes in every harvest.
According to research by the Seeds for Change (S4C) project, Nigeria is the 14th largest producer of tomatoes in the world and the 2nd largest producer in Africa. Kano leads in the production of tomatoes with contributions from both local and highly professional farmers across the state.
Despite the large amount of tomatoes produced, Nigeria still imports significant amounts of tomato paste. This is a result of various obstacles experienced by the farmers and the crops in the state.
Tuta absoluta has been one of the most devastating pests affecting tomato crops in the world. The pest has rendered many farmland and tomato farmers hopeless which has negatively affected tomato production in Kano State.
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Like Junaidu, the majority of the tomato farmers in the Kano South irrigation areas have suffered the same problem, courtesy of the Tuta Absoluta wisely known among the farmers as “Sharon.” Some of the local governments affected include Kura, Bunkure, Garun Malam, Rano, and Dawakin Kudu among others.
Speaking to Agro Climate News the young farmer said despite applying all necessary measures and steps, his farm could not make it and cost him his entire farming capital.
“I never thought I would end up like this, even though I know Tomato farming is risky. I have been using every pest that will prevent the disease, but it proves abortive. I visit the farm every day, sometimes twice a day. Any slide change, I will consult extension agents and do as they said,” he said.
For Sa’ad Yakubu, he could only harvest once from the farm before the Tuta penetrated and destroyed all the tomatoes he was expected to harvest.
According to him, “I spent over N300,000 on the farm. I thought of getting at least N700,000 to N1 million. On my first harvest, I got N140, 000. Unfortunately, it was the first and the last. I lost everything from there. Later I sold the grass at the rate of N15,000. That is tomato farming for us. It is very risky.
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“But we are tired of this situation. We need the government to come in so that we can address this issue. It is happening almost every year. That is why some farmers are shunning away from tomatoes which makes them expensive all the time,” he added.
‘Farmers alone cannot address Tuta Absoluta’
Speaking to newsmen, chairman of Tomato Out Growers Association of Nigeria (TOGAN) Alhaji Sani Danladi Yadakwari stated that farmers had thought they would be able to control the pest, but indicators have shown that the pest has overpowered them, as many are now groaning in desperation while counting their loses.
According to him, it is an understatement to connote that tuta absoluta has never left the state since its emergence in 2016, adding that even though farmers have been advancing in the fight against the pest, it is clear that the pest is fighting back so hard.
“We have tried to fight the menace of this pest for years in terms of managing the pests’ attack, but little has been done on the government’s side. We learnt that inputs to fight the pest have been procured; unfortunately, the pesticide is yet to be distributed to farmers. When we followed up on the matter, we were told that there is a need to subject farmers to adequate training on the best processes to adopt in the use of the pesticide. It has been there at the warehouses since last year, and here we are getting hit so hard by the pest,” he revealed.
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He urged authorities concerned to release the pesticide for usage and quickly organise a training session that will equip tomato farmers with the skills to use the pesticide effectively.
Government, NGOs to the rescue
A Non-Governmental Organization, HortiNigeria, a Dutch-funded horticultural program has expressed determination to assist no fewer than 60,000 farmers to tackle Tuta absoluta (tomato ebola) in Kano and other North West states.
The Sector Coordinator and Business-to-Business linkage HortiNigeria, Mr Abdullahi Umar, disclosed the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Campaign at the demonstration site in Gidan Kwari, Bunkure local government Kano.
He said the campaign aimed at shedding light on innovative solutions and strategies like the use of tutasan and pheromone traps, mulching and neem oil biopesticide as over time, the pest gets resistant to chemicals used.
“We target 60,000 farmers between Kano and Kaduna, after training for twelve months, we would move to other states to do something similar. The IPM was coordinated for greater Tuta management both environmentally and economically. For access to Finance and market access to enable farmers to scale up their business.”
Similarly, the Kano State Government, through the Kano Agricultural and Rural Development Authority (KNARDA) is making efforts through various interventions to address the challenges.
Agricultural interventions like the KSADP, SASAKAWA, and ICRISAT among others are partnering to strengthen farming activities and transform the system into a modern Agriculture across the state.
AgroClimateNews
