National President of the Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN), Ezekiel Ibrahim, has revealed that the recurring cases of insecurity, poor farming activities, climate change, and lack of access to credit facilities are crippling the food sector. Ibrahim advised that if these issues are not checked, there could be colossal increases in food prices beyond 2021.
Ibrahim revealed that the poultry industry is in a crippled state, as farmers cannot cope with the increased cost of production. He added that the major players in the industry – small and medium-sized farmers – are shutting down, which creates a void in the industry and threatens millions of jobs. The association is keen on drawing the attention of the government to these issues threatening the growth of the sector and encouraging them to put more effort to ensuring that the food security objective of government is achieved.
Ibrahim said that the factories that are still producing are doing so at a loss, and if the issues like heightening crime rate and increasing malnutrition are not resolved they will also shut down. “The economy of any nation depends on its purchasing power and many Nigerians go to bed today without eating food. We must secure this nation to allow farmers to go to farms and give credit facilities to genuine farmers”.
In addition, he believes that the nation can be transformed in three years with the vast array of land and strong youth presence. “We should use what we have, mobilize the youth and make agriculture attractive”, he said.
