31st December, 2010
Prophet Segun Adewumi is the Founder and General Overseer of House of Prayer Ministries. He is also the Chairman, Technical Committee, Nigeria Cassava Growers Association. In this interview with P.M.NEWS, he speaks on the challenges facing cassava growers and what can be done to improve the production of the commodity in the country.
What is the situation now regarding cassava production in the country?
The situation now is such that the enabling environment is not there for the farmers to thrive. The situation is so bad that as at now a Nigerian farmer will produce eight tonnes of cassava from a hectare of farm whereas his South African counterpart will produce 50 tonnes from a hectare. Assuming the cost of production is the same, if it is N150,000, a Nigerian farmer will produce at N18,000, the South African farmer will produce at N2,500. So, there is no way they can compete. Because the Nigerian farmer cannot compete with his South Afican counterpart, he cannot export his cassava.
What is responsible for this?
It is because the government has not actually planned agriculture and provide the enabling environment. To show that there is no magic in cassava production, South African farmers have come to Nigeria. They are in Nasarawa State which is a semi-dry region. Even in that place, they are able to produce 46 tonnes from an hectare. That is because they have an enabling environment. The ordinary farmer in Nigeria does not have the enabling environment. He doesn’t have a cultivable land that is tractorable. He He doesn’t have a mass land for which he can mass produce.
Why do you have particular interest in cassava?
Large scale production of cassava can bail the country out of its present economic predicament. Apart from being a popular staple food in the country, many industrial uses have been found for the crop. The crop is now being used for the commercial production of ethanol, starch and flour. We have unlimited demand for ethanol both in Nigeria and other parts of the world. Industrial starch produce in Nigeria is less than 10 percent of the national need while cassava flour can form up to 20 percent of bread flour to reduce our bill for the importation of wheat. All the three items listed above are also raw materials to other industries. This is to say mass production of cassava will readily trigger off the establishment of chains of industries to employ millions of jobless people.
What efforts are you now making to encourage large scale production of cassava in Nigeria?
That is exactly what we intend to tackle. We desire to complement the efforts of the various governments to use cassava for mass employment and food security. All that is needed is to create the enabling environment for farmers to prosper.
Can you shed more light on this enabling environment?
We speak of the environment that will bridge the gap between Nigeria farmers who reap eight tonnes from an hectare of his farm and farmers in South Africa that obtains between 40 to 60 tonnes from the same hectare of land. For example, if we assume that cost of production of an hectare is N150,000 to both farmers, the implication is that it costs the Nigeria farmer N18,750 to produce a tonne of cassava while his South African counterpart produces at N2,500 per tonne. This is why despite all the noise made we are unable to sell our cassava in the international market.
The enabling environment include: Availability of cultivable and tractorisable land big enough to support mechanized farming, availability of tractors and accessories, provision of seedlings and other inputs, training and provision of technical support by grouping farmers under extension officers and arrangement of easy and automatic market for the product.
What about the CBN loans that are now available to different categories of farmers?
We wish to advise the CBN that unless adequate measures are taken, this good and well intended gesture will neither generate employment nor improve food security because the bulk of the loan may be diverted to trading. In fact, with the lack of enabling environment, whatever the farmer invests in agriculture will not generate any return. For example, I am told that the white farmers in Kwara and Nasarawa states now obtain 42 tonnes of Cassava from an hectare of land but farmers in South West with a more humid land can only reap eight tonnes. How will this categories of farmer compete in the same market. The CBN should focus on how we can find a suitable enabling environment to create employment and ensure food security. Loan is just one of them and probably the list of the requirements.
What do you think is the way out?
My Company is already working with the various State governments to shift emphasis to large scale production of cassava. We have designed a comprehensive programme for successful commercial farming that will employ thousand of the youths and ensure food security. These include acquisition of cultivable land, clearing of the land, relocation of refuse, demarcation of the land into blocks of five hectares with tractor roads between them, registration of youths as participants, training them and allocating a block of five hectares to each of them, grouping of ten participants to one extension officer for supervision and provision of their needs.
Others include the technical operation like land preparation, chemical and fertilizer application will be done by the technical crew of the company. All that the participant does is provision of direct labour like planting and harvesting. Participant will also be given N10,000 allowance for 15 months until harvesting. Upon the sales of the products, allowances and cost of other inputs will be deducted and the balance shall be paid to the participant.
Can You Illustrate The Gains Of Participants?
He produces 25 tonnes from an hectare and will produce 125 tonnes from a block of five hectares. He sells at N13,000 per ton. His turnover becomes 1,650,000. Other inputs per hectare is N90,000. For five hectares, N450,000 added to 150,000 allowance, cost of production is N600,000
After the deduction of N600,000, management and other charges, the participant will receive the balance of not less than N625,000 to bring his total income during the planting season to N800,000 or N53,000 monthly.
Where the participant performs well, his portion will be doubled the following year, that means he will have 10 hectares and that will continue until he has 25 hectares and earn 4,000,000 in a planting season. After that we shall set him up for a 100 hectares farm with legitimate income of N16,250,000 in a planting season.
How do you finance this project?
Several banks have indicated their willingness in writing to finance the programme. For example, representatives of Union Bank have held meetings with our company and the Commissioners for Agriculture and Labour and productivity in Ondo State to express interest in the project and thereafter sent in a letter as confirmation. We also held a meeting with the regional manager of Zenith Bank in the office of the Commissioner for Agriculture in Oyo State and the bank will provide all the fund upon 80 percent guarantee for the project.
When is the project likely to take off?
Yes, we are working with some state governments like the Oyo State Commissioner for Agriculture who identified 2500 hectares in Awe and Fashola farm estates for the project. The two farms have been set aside for the programme. We also introduce a processing factory that uses 400 metric tonnes of cassava roots daily to the government.
In Ondo State, the Commissioner for Agriculture wrote us and we have identified over 20,000 hectares of cultivable land in the Central and Northern Senatorial district of the state. In addition, we have also got 1,500 hectares on lease from the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) in Akure to be used as a demonstration farm. The programme is being handled by the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Labour and Productivity and Wealth Creation Agency. Our target for this season is 5,000 hectares in the two senatorial districts that will employ 800 direct participants.
In Kogi State, we are already working on 1,000 hectares of land that our company owns on free holding in Iyara Ijumu. Arrangement is being made to register 30 youths from each of the seven local governments that constitute the senatorial district. That means we shall mobilize 210 participants and give them a block of five hectares each. We shall train them and put them on N10,000 monthly allowance. Each will earn N800,000 per farming season and as stated earlier, their portions will be doubled in the subsequent years. Senator Smart Adeyemi is supporting the programme fully to better the lives of citizen of the senatorial district so that they will prosper.
In Lagos State, we have held meetings with the Ministry of Agriculture and the state is willing to set up farms outside the state to boost food production in the state. Our company is in position to make 50 thousand hectares of land available for this programme in Ondo, Ekiti and Kogi states.
As a clergy man, how do you combine your pastoral work with farming?
I think farming is part of evangelism. Jesus came to give us abundant life and was always making bread and fish available to draw people into the fold. The church has been helping the society through inspirational talks that mobilize them to take positive steps. The church has also intervened to save the educational sector by establishing model universities. I feel we can go further and put into practice what we preach to lay good example and help our teaming followers to whom we preach messages of prosperity in an environment that lack opportunity to prosper without defrauding. I will like to see churches with big financial resources come into this programme for the benefit of their members and the society at large.
What is your advice to Nigerians?
We extend invitation to individuals, cooperate entities, local, state and Federal institutions to help us promote cultivation and processing of cassava as alternative foreign exchange earner for Nigeria. In fact, cassava is now a cash crop.
Your parting words
I have exceptional interest in farming, particularly in the production of cassava. My Company: Sam Mike & Vic Ltd had cultivated hundreds of hectares of Cassava in the past ten years in Ondo, Ekiti and Kogi States. The company also owns a Gari Factory that produced five tonnes of Gari daily. We had supplied gari to the Federal Strategic Grain and Food Reserve for two years. I was once the Chairman of Nigeria Cassava Grower Association Ondo State. At the National level I was the Chairman, Nigeria Cassava Grower Association for technical and implementation committee, my company drew up National Programme for 400,000 hectares mechanized Cassava Project. Presently I am Patron to various Cassava groups including Nigeria Cassava Grower Association Ondo State.
