By Mo Isa
Farmers in northern Nigeria have been made to pay up to N120,000 to bandits in order for them to farm (planting and harvesting).
This was revealed in a report by SB Morgan Intelligence, which added that failure to do so usually results in forfeiture of harvest, kidnapping or even death.
According to the report, in some communities in Kaduna, farmers have been forced to pay between N70,000 and N100,000 for permission to farm.
This reality not only compounds the food security situation in the country but also the general security of the region where abductions have become rife.
READ ALSO | Otu appoints DGs, MDs, GMs of boards, agencies
“In Kaduna, communities like Kidandan, Galadimawa Kerawa, Sabon Layi, Sabon Birni and Ruma have been significantly impacted. Residents in these areas have reported paying substantial sums ranging from N70,000 to N100,000 to bandits for permission to farm, with additional payments required for harvesting. Those who resist these demands face severe consequences, including abduction, murder or confiscation of their produce,” the report stated.
The report added, “In Zamfara, payments to bandits depend on the type of crop being planted with more expensive crops farmers paying the highest.
“For example, rice farmers in some LGAs according to the study coughed out around N120,000 as farm levies to bandits while guinea corn farmers were made to pay just
N50,000.”
The further report noted that payments to bandits could either be in cash or from proceeds of harvests as during the harvest season, the levies are usually higher. Bandits have also engaged in tacit slavery forcing communities to grow crops and sell crops for
them.
Meanwhile, between November 2020 and November 2023, farmers across the North-west states were levied around N224.92 million by different groups of bandits operating in the region. The abductions and in some cases, deaths of victims have forced many to flee their home communities.