News in Brief:
– Grain harvests are being threatened due to a massive invasion of quelea birds in northern Nigeria, which are rapidly consuming crops and causing significant economic losses to farmers.
– The government’s response to the crisis has been met with criticism, as farmers grapple with the devastating impact on their livelihoods.
Expected bumper harvests of grains such as rice, wheat, and maize are at risk due to reported invasion of destructive avian pests, the quelea birds. These voracious, migratory animals, numbering in the millions, have reportedly been sighted in most parts of northern Nigeria. This has caused anxiety among farmers in the region while potentially exacerbating food security challenges both regionally and nationally.
Affected states include Kano, Sokoto, Kebbi, Bauchi, Jigawa, Zamfara, Yobe, Gombe, Katsina, Taraba, Borno, and Adamawa.
Catastrophic consequences
Essentially, the consequences of the invasion are catastrophic. Fields of rice, maize, millet, and sorghum, the region’s staple foods, are in jeopardy of being reduced to barren landscapes.
Farmers who rely on these crops for sustenance and income are facing unprecedented losses. The economic impact on the region, and by extension the country, is immense, as the agricultural sector is a crucial driver of the local economy.
Moreover, with millions already vulnerable to food insecurity due to factors like insurgency and poverty, the potential loss of this year’s harvest could push many to the brink of starvation, while also driving up grain prices in the market.
Farmers’ desperate measures
According to a farmer, Mr. Saleh Bwacha, speaking in a telephone chat with this publication, farmers often take certain measures to deal with the pest menace. This includes engaging their children or wards to help dispel the ravaging pests, called ‘karbaree’ in Hausa language. He recalls using this method as a child, along with his siblings, to scare off birds from his family’s modest rice farm in Karim Lamido local government area of Taraba State. “We generally ran around the field, making noises with discarded tin pots and catapults (locally improvised slingshots) to try to scare the birds off the field,” he said.
However, he admits that this measure has limited success. Consequently, losses could eventually amount to 30% or even a total decimation of crops. In this regard, the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) estimates agricultural losses attributable to the quelea infestation in the region of $50 million annually.
Bwacha, therefore, appealed to the relevant authorities to take appropriate action to address the situation.
Government response
Meanwhile, the Nigerian government has acknowledged the gravity of the situation and initiated measures to address the crisis. According to the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, these include launching the 2023/2024 aerial spray against the quelea birds. States in this programme include Kebbi, Sokoto, Katsina, Adamawa, Kano, Jigawa, Taraba, Bauchi, Gombe, Yobe, Zamfara, and Borno states.
Also, other measures involve deploying teams of experts to assess the damage and develop mitigation strategies. Additionally, pesticides like Fenthion and DDVP are among the inputs being distributed by the government to tackle the menace.
State governments like Kebbi and Bauchi have taken steps including procuring agrochemicals and other equipment to combat the situation.
However, some critics argue that the government’s response has been slow and inadequate. Farmers like Mr. Bwacha claim to have received little to no support. This leaves them to largely fend for themselves against the overwhelming bird menace.
The quelea birds migrate from neighbouring countries in search of food primarily due to environmental factors and dwindling food resources.
Although they primarily feed on wild grasses, their immense flocks pose a persistent threat to cultivated grains. They favour crops such as sorghum, wheat, barley, millet, and rice.
These birds are voracious eaters, consuming approximately 10 grams of grain daily—half their body weight. A staggering two million birds can collectively devour up to 20 tons of grain in a single day.
