By Iliya Kure
Farmers under the auspices of Maize Association of Nigeria (MAAN) have been moving thousands of tonnes of maize to Kaduna, to set up pyramids, ahead of the Association’s 30th anniversary.
Many trucks were sighted bringing in maize from 21 maize growing states under the 2021 rain-fed season, cultivated under the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP).
The Association’s officials said the required quantity of maize and sizes of the pyramids would be determined by availability of space at Eid prayer ground, Unguwan Sarki, where the pyramids would be set up.
Speaking with journalists at the flag-off of the pyramids, Coordinator of the ABP for the MAAN, Joseph Bamidele, said the pyramid was to showcase the successes the farmers had achieved in maize production in Nigeria.
President of the Maize Association of Nigeria, Dr Bello Abubakar, described the formation of the maize pyramids as “the second national pyramid ever in Nigeria and Africa.
“We want to showcase what we have done and acknowledge what Mr. President has done for maize farmers in Nigeria. We also want to show the effort and appreciation of all maize farmers in Nigeria.”
Speaking on high price of grains in the market, he said it was a global issue, adding that statistics by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) had predicted increase in prices of food commodities by the end of 2021.
“The price of maize is even better than the prices of other commodities. It is a global issue, it is not only in Nigeria,” he said.
“One factor that contributed to the high cost of maize is COVID-19 in 2019 and 2020. There was a scarcity of inputs that farmers needed. Even mechanisation equipment was scarce due to COVID-19. What a farmer would buy at N1,500 has gone up N4,000. And the cost of production has increased significantly.
“Before this administration came in 2015, we only had 8 million tonnes of maize, but by the end of 2020, it was 20 million tonnes. Apart from that, farmers now have access to inputs without their money but as a loan; they get the technology under the ABP,” he added.
Speaking on productivity of farmers, the MAAN president said, “Where farmers were getting 20 metric tonnes of maize, they are now getting 50. There is a new technology of farming. And there are extension services under the ABP, as well as mechanisation, monitoring and evaluation. The farmers are benefiting, and they have increased their production.
“The maize mills we have in the country have increased. The processors have more companies now, so they employ more people. These are the success stories of the ABP. In one season, more than one million people get jobs under the programme.” He stated.