News in brief: Erratic rainfall in Northeast Nigeria has led to significant losses for farmers, particularly in states like Borno, Yobe, Bauchi, and Adamawa, where heavy investments in agriculture were made this season. Some farmers have resorted to replanting with drought-resistant crops like millet, guinea corn, and beans, while others are hoping for continued rains past September.
Erratic rainfall in Northeast Nigeria has caused irrecoverable losses for farmers and raised concerns among governors in the region, according to a news report.
Farmers in the four states of Borno, Yobe, Bauchi, and Adamawa say they have invested heavily in their agricultural fields this season, but the unpredictable rainfall has damaged their crops.
In Borno, communities in the northern part of the state like Abadam, Kukawa, Guzamala, Mobar, Monguno, and Kaga, were the most affected. Some farmers have had to replant everything with drought-resistant crops like millet, guinea corn, and beans.
Many of them have expressed the fact that they were takin risks with planting millet and guinea corn. They are hoping that the rains will continue past September.
However, some farmers have taken solace in the fact that it was a good harvest for beans this year. They are targeting the dry season for cultivation of crops, as an alternative to the situation.
Some states have only witnessed few moments of rainfall, further exacerbating a dire situation. Affected farmers have started planting sweet potatoes as an alternative. Many of them in Northern states, like Kano, Bauchi, Adamawa and Yobe have borne the brunt of the attendant hardship caused by drought-like conditions.
Prayer sessions in both the Moslem and the Christian faith have been organised with the aim of seeking solution to the situation. Chairman of the North East Governors Forum, Professor Babagana Umara Zulum of Borno, has called on the federal government to intervene and help farmers in the region cope with the effects of climate change.
