From Isaac Anumihe, Abuja
The controversy that has long surrounded agriculture data has now been rested with the launch of National Agricultural Sample Census (NASC) report which revealed that there are about 40.2 million agricultural households in Nigeria.
Launching the report, yesterday, in Abuja, National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) also disclosed that out of the 91 per cent that cultivated crops, 35 per cent practised only crop cultivation while 48 per cent were reported raising any type of livestock.
Furthermore, 16 per cent of the households raised 58 million cattle, 41.2 per cent reared about 124 million goats; 42.5 per cent, poultry– most commonly chickens – while only 5 per cent practised fisheries.
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“In addition, the least percentage of agricultural households into crop cultivation was recorded in Lagos State (48.0 per cent), while Ebonyi State had the highest with 99.5 per cent. The highest per centage of agricultural households engaged in livestock production was reported in Jigawa State with 84.2 per cent; followed by Bauchi State with 79.7 per cent. For poultry, the highest per centage of agricultural households was recorded in Benue State with 65.2 per cent; closely followed by Ebonyi State with 63.3 per cent” NBS said.
In his remarks, the Statistician General of the federation, Prince Adeyemi Adeniran said that the nation has suffered for lack of data on the agriculture sector for decades and this had hampered its progress in the sector. It has also prohibited investors in the sector.
“For over two and a half decades, the absence of comprehensive data on Nigeria’s agricultural sector has been a significant barrier to progress. This gap has limited the ability of policymakers, investors, and stakeholders to make more informed decisions that are critical to the sector’s growth, and overall food security in Nigeria. However, the conduct of the 2022 NASC exercise, the first of its kind in over 27 years, marks a turning point.
“With over 65 per cent of the population directly or indirectly dependent on the agriculture sector for their daily sustenance, the NASC results offer invaluable insights into the very foundation of our agricultural sector, providing a detailed picture of the size and structure of farm holdings.
“We will better understand the distribution of land ownership and operational structures across various farm types.
“The launch of the NASC results is particularly timely given the current global and national focus on food security, as well as the government’s drive towards enhancing sustainable local production to cater for our youthful and growing population.
“The data gleaned from this census is more critical than ever. Viewing it from a statistical standpoint, the results provide major inputs into the ongoing rebasing of National Accounts, or the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), as we generally know it. It will further empower us to develop evidence-based solutions for pressing challenges. By understanding the current state of agriculture, we can design targeted policies and programmes to address issues related to food security, promote sustainable agricultural practices, and enhance overall productivity.
“It will also assist in attracting the much-needed private sector investment into the agricultural landscape. The data will equip investors with the confidence and knowledge required to make informed decisions regarding agricultural ventures in Nigeria.
“Furthermore, the results will serve as a vital benchmark for tracking progress toward achieving national and international agricultural development goals, including those outlined in the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)” Adeniran said.
Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Atiku Bagudu said that the biggest key to sustained economic growth was to ensure that the 40.2 million households were continuously supported so that they could perform better.
“Nigeria is blessed with an agricultural populace who are proud to identify themselves as such. They are very proud to be farmers and very proud to be fishing communities.
“That has a significant effect on absorptive capacities. That means they are people who are happy to help engage and support production in that area of our national life. They are not aiming to migrate to cities to live; they are very proud .
“That means we need to continuously calibrate our deliverance structure so we support them to generate more return for what they are proud to do by contributing to our national productivity and output” he said.
Bagudu also noted that the report should energize Nigerians and government’s policy could calibrate and co-ordinate all programmes so that support could be based on need at the local level.
“Nigeria is a blessed nation and this report further supports that and across the 36 states are hard working men and women seeking to make a living.
“All of them are looking for support to continue to do what they enjoy doing to contribute to our national prosperity. That we promise the Renewed Hope Agenda will continue to deliver on” he said.
The minister also stated that the census covered almost 98 per cent of the 774 local government areas. This, he noted, shows that insecurity in the country is not as bad and limiting as it’s meant to believe.
According to him, other factors such as energy cost and climate change which were responsible for reducing the farmers’ output are not really insecurity.
Meanwhile, NASC marks a turning point for Nigeria’s agricultural sector. It is expected to be carried out every five to 10 years in line with the standard set by the United Nations for Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO). The main objective of the listing exercise is to collect information on agricultural activities at household level in order to provide a comprehensive frame (list of farming households) for agricultural surveys.
The NASC listing was conducted using digitised Enumeration Area (EA) maps in all the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). Forty EAs were selected and canvassed in each Local Government Area (LGA) with varying number of EAs covered by state.
Out of the 774 LGAs in the country, 767 were fully covered; three were partially covered (two in Imo State and one in Borno State) and four were not covered due to insecurity at the time of the survey. In all, 30,960 EAs were proposed to be covered nationwide but 30,546 EAs were eventually covered.
