Except in a few states, the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) farmlands across the federation have fallen on hard times.
The farms, which were set up in the 70s and early 80s, to enable the corps members, who studied allied courses such as Agriculture, Veterinary Medicine, and Animal Husbandry, to practice their professions, have folded up. That is no thanks to the harsh economic situations which have befallen the country.
During their heydays, based on the principle of comparative advantages, most states acquired between 40 – 60 hectares of land and cultivated major crops such as maize, cassava, cowpea, rice, potato and sorghum.
NYSC farms were found all over the federation, particularly in Abuja, Anambra, Akwa Ibom; Edo; Borno, Delta, and Imo.
Others were Kaduna, Kwara, Niger, Ondo, Ogun, Osun, Plateau and Taraba states.
In addition, there were livestock projects exemplified by the beef fattening projects in Bauchi, Kano, Katsina, and Sokoto, piggery projects at Anambra, Lagos and Plateau; poultry farms and allied feed mills in Benue, Imo, Lagos, and Ondo, Fishery projects in Oyo, Ogun and Rivers.
Also, there were small stock industries specialising in sheep and goat keeping, rice mills in Enugu and Sokoto states, and garri processing in Kwara State.
A retired director, who spoke with the Sunday Telegraph, on condition of anonymity, said that the founding fathers of the scheme in their quest to make the scheme attractive to the corps members, especially those who studied agriculture and allied professions, decided to introduce farming, taking into cognizance principle of comparative advantage. Hence, they cited feed mill in Lagos, rice mill in Ezeolu, Ebonyi State (formerly Enugu) farms in Niger State with fishery in Lagos and Rivers states.
“The farms were doing well, and the Federal Government, especially the administration of General Ibrahim Babangida, gave tractors to the NYSC farms, and they engaged in mechanized farming.
“After a while, the policymakers wanted the scheme to be self-sufficient. So, they separated it and turned it into ventures, which are now generating revenue.
“States, which went into arable farming include: Abuja, Anambra, Akwa – Ibom, Edo, Delta, Borno, Adamawa, Taraba Imo, Kaduna Kwara, Niger, Ondo, Ogun, Oyo and Plateau.”
But today, the reverse is the case as the farms are no more.
Sunday Telegraph’s investigations revealed that the harsh economic climate, encroachment on the farm lands, as well as the failure of the state governments to either pay compensation to the owners or communities from which the lands were acquired or properly document, have conspired to make a nonsense of the projects. In some cases, the farmlands have to give way to road construction or housing estates.
From NYSC farm to Rivers Songhai Farm
The “Old NYSC farm” in Rivers State is now known as the Rivers Songhai Farm, located in Bunu Tai within the Tai Local Government Area. It is located near the NYSC Orientation Camp in Nonwa-Gbam, Tai.
It was initially established for the school-to-land farm project by the state government in 1985, and later modeled along the Songhai Farm in Porto Novo, Benin Republic. It is 20 times the size of the former by boasting a vast expanse of 314 hectares.
The farms now covers livestock production, crop cultivation, fisheries, forestry, engineering services, agro-industrialization, and farmer training. But they did not thrive. Although successive administrations did their best to keep it running and productive, it remained a big farm owned by the state that occasionally attracted financing for improvement.
But everything about the farm changed during the administration of Chibuike Amaechi, who upgraded the facilities.
The road to the farm had been abandoned, but Amaechi awarded its contract and also made it a tourist attraction with the upgrade of the lodging facility within the farm. The Songhai Farm was the training ground of the Rivers State Sustainable Development Agency, which used it to train farmers.
The farm suffered another dramatic fate in 2015, when Amaechi left office. It was then that the issue of salary for workers within the farm arose.
This transition marked the beginning of a rather challenging chapter in the farm’s narrative. From 2015 until the present day, the Songhai farm project has, regrettably, dwindled into a mere semblance of its former self.
The situation of the farm improved under suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara, who visited it and promised to rejuvenate it, thereby rekindling its potential to diversify the state’s economy.
Anambra : Farm now moribund
In Anambra State, the farm, which used to be home to crops, poultry, and piggery, is now moribund. No thanks to a lack of maintenance.
Inhabitants of the communities now cultivate the farm, while some areas have been overgrown by weeds.
The Public Relations Officer, Mr Felix Obiekwe, who recently assumed office in Anambra State, told Sunday Telegraph that the farm had been moribund before he came to the state and promised to find out why.
He said:”You see, I have just assumed office here in Anambra State, and it has not been functional before I came. But I will try to find out why and the state of the farm.”
Delta Farm converted to Obasanjo farms
The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) orientation farm project in Delta State is almost gone.
The Live and Own a Farm (LOAF) land at Ogwashi-Uku in Aniocha South Local Government Area of the state, which was being used as a farm site to train and plant food to feed the corps members, was converted to Obasanjo Farms when Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan was the governor.
Since then, the corps members have been undergoing theoretical farm training at the orientation camp at Issele-Uku in Aniocha North Local Government Area of the state.
But the state government has introduced other skill acquisition trainings in ICT, Fashion Designing (Tailoring), Barbing and Hairdressing, livestock, aquaculture among others through former Governor Ifeanyi Okowa’s Skill Training Entrepreneurial Programme (STEP) and his Youth Agricultural Entrepreneurial Programme (YAGEP) for graduate youths of the state’s origin to complement their theoretical training during the NYSC programme.
However, the majority of the corps members are left at the mercy of the private sector participants after their orientation camp training.
Many calls put across to the Public Relations Officer of the NYSC in Delta, proved abortive as she refused to pick up calls or respond to text messages.
No farm in Katsina
In Katsina State, the NYSC farm exists only on paper. Since the creation of the State in September 1987 from the old Kaduna State, there has been no operational NYSC farm nor livestock, or fishery farm in the state.
According to the Public Relations Officer of the NYSC in Katsina State, Mr Alex, since he assumed duty in the State, there has been no functional NYSC farm in the state.
However, he was of the opinion that it would be good for the establishment of the farm, as it would be of immense benefit to more people, especially NYSC members who study agriculture.
Further, he said, with the Federal Government’s plans to have food security, if such a farm was established, they will give their own contributions towards food security in the country.
Taken over by road construction in Ondo
The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has no farm currently in Ondo State due to the expansion of the road between Akure, the state capital, and Ado-Ekiti in Ekiti State.
A source said the NYSC farm in Itaogbolu in Akure North Local Government Area has been destroyed because of the dualisation of the Akure-Ado-Ekiti road by the Federal Government.
However, the source said the NYSC would begin its new farm in Ikare-Akoko in the Akoko Northeast Local Government Area of the state’s next planting season.
But it is not a case of gloom all through, as a few farms are doing well. For instance, the gari processing factory in Afon, Kwara State, which was commissioned in June 1991, has been resuscitated after it went comatose.
The State Coordinator, Mr. Onifade Olaoluwa Joshua, in an interview with one of our correspondents said: “We used to have a farm at NYSC camp in the past with garri factory but when I came to the leadership of the NYSC scheme, I discovered that the farm, about 113 hectares of land, was encroached upon by the villagers and was taken over.
“The land was given by the state government then to the NYSC, but since there was no document, no title on it, it’s difficult to now say we want to recover the land from those people, who truly encroached on the land.
“But if the government wants to help us, I think they can step in since it has been given to NYSC. Even now that the Federal Government is looking towards how NYSC as an organisation can revive its farms and help our youths to be self-reliant because if in the area of farming, we can have this one we can have a farm settlement and then these corps members if there’s support, financial support, they are ready to stay and contribute their quota in the area of food production and food security for the country. That’s one.
“Also, when I came in, the garri factory also was not functional. It was moribund but in the course of my duty, I went there, I visited that place. I looked at it and said I will not like to allow this place to be lying fallow. So, one of the corps members in that particular year, I think it was last year, approached me that he wanted to go into garri processing business and I now said instead of that place lying fallow, we must encourage these young Nigerians to at least, be self-employed. If we help this particular corps member, at least, we have reduced the unemployment rate by engaging him in that place, and that place will no longer be a waste.
“So, the guy, the corps member in question, approached the Bank of Industry (BOI) for a loan. I think he was given a loan of roughly N4 million, but before he could process the payment, he passed out of the NYSC.
“However, when he passed out, he still came back to me. So, I felt that, that money he has taken for him not to run into financial trouble and for him to still be encouraged, I now wrote an MoU to allow him to use the facility.
“ He bought some equipment and then he turned that place into be functional one. I think there was a time we bought garri, at least some of the garri we consumed in the camp, from him to further encourage him too and the women within the community too were engaged; they were the ones going there to do those menial jobs.”
Edo embarks on 1000 oil palm plantations, other agric ventures
Following the marching order of the NYSC Director–General, Brigadier-General Olakunle Oluseye Nafiu, that all the NYSC farms should be resuscitated, the corps members in Edo State are set to plant a 1000-oil-palm plantation and other economic trees, which will, in the near future, help them grow part of what they need in camp and serve their immediate environment.
The State Coordinator, Mrs Ifeoma Ben-Ushie, said the project, which is a national mandate, has commenced in Edo State with the first phase of 206 oil palm trees, 10 coconut trees, vegetables, and okra.
She said, though, the scheme does not have a farm in Edo State, they are doing everything within their means to ensure that the project becomes a reality, adding that the Corps already has partners who are ready to assist in providing the needed support.
She said, “Although Edo State has no farm in that regard, we are currently trying to set up farms across our camps. We have one in Auchi, one in Fuga; the one we have in Okada, we have vegetables, Okra, and oil palm. So far, we have planted 206 palms, aside from coconut and other economic trees that we have planted. The camps have been stripped of all trees, and we are replacing them with economic trees.
Farm still working in Oyo – Coordinator
Just like in Kwara, the farm in Iseyin Oke–Ogun area, Oyo State, is in full bloom as the corps members still work on the farm.
Located close to the University of Agriculture, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), mechanized farming thrives there, said the State coordinator, Comrade Abel Odoba.
To encourage the corps members, Odoba said: “Even NYSC built a 10-room apartment there for the Corps members. The NYSC farm is still in place in Oyo State, and our people have been farming.
“In essence, our own NYSC farm in Oyo State has not been converted to a housing estate. People are already working on the farm since the rainy season has commenced. The DG has instructed that all the farms throughout the federation must be revamped. So, ours in Oyo State is working. People in the community even bought some of our products.”
However, farming activity is not optimal due to the compensation issue, which has not been fully settled.
Odoba said, “That is true. When the community gave us 200 hectares of land for farming, the community leaders asked the government, who gave the land to us to pay a sum of N20 million as compensation to them.
“Since I came on board, I have been working with the Ministry to ensure that the matter is resolved. Nevertheless, we have been farming on the land but they are still requesting their compensation. That is the true position of it. I have even communicated to my management that the people are requesting compensation for their community land.
“This is necessary to be done for the full realisation of such intensive farming to bring out its potential. There, they are rearing livestock animals, a garri factory, fishing, and so many things in that place. The place is a viable place that adds food security to national development. Most of the farm produce we also consume in our Orientation Camp came from the farm.
“So, the major challenge now is the compensation of the community. It is not allowing for the full utilisation of the land for our farming.
“But as I speak with you, our people are working on the land. We are waiting for the government to resolve the issue of compensation with the community land owners quickly. The people within the community are the first beneficiaries of the farm produce.
“They are the ones enjoying the food security. So, through this medium, I am also appealing to the Oyo State government to resolve the issue of compensation with the community so we can have full enjoyment of the farm
“There is more to gain by the Oyo State people if this is given priority. Many of the community’s children will also be employed to work there.”
