I’ll start this essay with the fact that I always refuse to praise any democratic government for what it’s using taxpayers’ money to do, if it actually does it.
But then, there’s always an exception to any rule. The Yoruba say that, if we say our father’s masquerade will dance, and they don’t, nobody can arrest us. That’s why I shower praises on the present regime in Nigeria for making sure the nation is in its firm grips.
See, the government is constructing the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway at the expense of a full development of the nation’s agricultural potentials. The highway will connect nine states, boost inter-regional trade, tourism and economic integration. At an estimated cost of $12.5 billion, the project won’t be completed until 2031.
Meanwhile the 2025 budget allocates $563,673,000 to agriculture, which is even a significant increase aimed at boosting food security.
Let’s imagine Nigeria does invest the whopping sum of $12.5 billion on agriculture. Apart from being transformative, thousands of kilometers of rural roads would have been constructed and it would have improved access to markets and reduced post-harvest losses. It would have expanded irrigation to millions of hectares and reduced dependence on erratic rainfall and boosted year-round farming. The authorities would also have been able to build modern silos, cold chains, and agro-processing hubs to reduce waste and increase value-added exports.
Productivity would also have been boosted as mechanization leading to improved inputs would have been the order of the day. It would have also have provided jobs for millions of youths.
Above all, it would have improved the nation’s job security and led to a reduction in the importation of food, thereby saving the dollars used in importing food.
Investing such a huge amount on agriculture would have been a revolution as far as Nigeria’s food system is concerned. It would have been a great job provider, thereby reducing poverty.
But when the people are too quiet for comfort, it could be equal to a state of complicit. And when a government feels it isn’t accountable to the people who are its employers, it could take decisions that are at variance with their aspirations.
I guess some of the reasons the government has refused to prioritize agriculture are that, the road project is a single one involving lots of dollars and it could lead to you know what. Meanwhile, there are a lot of things wrong with holding on to agriculture like a baby. It would have liberalized the masses from hunger which the ruling class has been using as a weapon. The ruling elite will no longer have foot soldiers to use for unholy activities. Lastly, it has the propensity of exposing some “under the table deals.”
