EBONYI FARMERS CRY OUT TO GOVT AS FLOOD RAVAGES FARMLANDS

Reporter: AMECHI ODO

Ebonyi is one of the states in the South East zone of the country where perennial flooding impacts on food production. Crops, including rice, yam, cassava and vegetables, which are mostly cultivated by farmers in the state, are planted in riverine and swampy areas as well as low lands, which are located in flood active sites scattered across the state.

These crops are often swept away or submerged by flood between the months of August and October. As a result of the development, many farmers have indicated interest in dry season farming but that is also being impeded by lack of irrigation facilities.

Radio Nigeria takes a look at the experiences of farmers in the state and efforts by the government and other agencies to address the problem. Some of the flood prone areas are Amachi and Unagboke in Abakaliki Local Government Area; Esuu River flood site at Uburu in Ohaozara Local Government Area; Item Amagu, Igbudu flood area in Ikwo Local Government Area; and Esuu flood site at Ishiagu in Ivo Local Government Area.

One of the affected rice farmers in Ikwo, Mr. Emmanuel Nworie, explained that he had lost count of losses as a result of flooding that ravages his farms annually.

“Farmers lose a lot of crops because they will plant yam, rice and cassava and when flood comes it will wipe out everything,” Mr. Nworie lamented.

Another farmer in Unagboke Community in Abakaliki Local Government Area, Elder Emma Emmanuel, noted that famers in his area lost crops worth thousands of Naira during a flash flood that occurred last week.

‘’It lasted for three days and in those three days or four, it affected so many things yam, cassava and rice,’’ Elder Emmanuel cried out.

The Coordinator Local Emergency Management Committee in Ebonyi State, Mr. Emmanuel Chukwu, identified Ikwo as the most flood prone area in the state with about thirty four thousand farmers recording  losses amounting to millions of Naira in 2021 alone.

‘’One of them will be telling you that he spent more than #700,000.00 to #800, 000.00. Like this year we have gotten about thirty-four thousand farmers and after checking the losses, we found out that they were valued at two point something million Naira,’’ he said.

On efforts being made to cushion the effect of flooding on farmers, the Executive Secretary Ebonyi State Emergency Management Agency, Pastor Ken Oziomaeze, stated that the agency was making plans to distribute implements to about four thousands of those whose farms were affected by flooding in 2020.

Pastor Oziomaeze said: ‘’I have gotten approval from NEMA worth about two hundred and something million and one of the things we will do in the next two weeks is to distribute water pumping machines to them’’

The Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources in Ebonyi State, Chief Ogodo Alinome, said the state government had trained about seventy-eight thousand farmers on dry season farming as part of measures to reduce losses being incurred by farmers as a result of flood.

‘’If you have a flood prone area, you have two options to farm early and harvest between the months of August and September. As the flood is going, you plant another one, that’s the one we call dry season farming,’’ the Commissioner explained.

Chief Alinome called on the Federal Government to build irrigation facilities to enable farmers in the area to fully embark on dry season farming and reduce losses associated with cultivating crops in flood prone areas.