Many farmers in conflict-torn areas of states in northern Nigeria are subject to hefty levies to access their farms. In the midst of a food security crisis across the country, a report by SBM Intelligence revealed that this contributes to Nigeria’s food insecurity.

Bandits in some states in Northern Nigeria, such as Kaduna, Zamfara and Kaduna, terrorise farmers by forcing them to pay fines to enable them to access their farmlands and harvest crops.

According to the report, these levies range from N70,000 to N100,000. In cases where farmers can not afford these costs, the bandits impose penalties on them.

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”Those who resist these demands face severe consequences, including abduction, murder or confiscation of their produce. In some instances, bandits bring their cattle to graze on the remaining crops, further exacerbating the situation by destroying potential seedlings,” the report read.

For farmers in Sokoto, the levies imposed on them depend on the type and size of crop on the farmland.

CROP TYPES	LEVY (Naira)
Beans	100,000
Rice	120,000
Maize	70,000
Millet	80,000
Guinea corn	50,000

The report also revealed that farmers abandon some parts of their farms to the bandits on some occasions. It added that this has negatively impacted food affordability in these regions.

“This has spiked the cost of living in the region as food prices in the northwest experienced a panic surge, worsening the challenge of food affordability in the region,” the report stated.

Imposing levies on farmers to access their farms is not the only activity contributing to the unaffordability of food. The report added that bandits have now become more involved in farming activities, confiscating farms, forcing villagers to cultivate the land, selling the produce and bringing them proceeds from the sale.

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“Farmers, who now have the opportunity to pay bandits to allow them to harvest their crops, unlike in previous years, still face challenges. They stated that they must account for the various sums paid to bandits, as well as transportation costs to the market, when setting the final prices of their produce. Consequently, customers bear the cost of these additional expenses,” it added.

The SBM Intelligence report also revealed that prices of farm produce in markets across Sokoto, Katsina and Kaduna have been increasing since the first quarter of 2022.

	Q1 2022	Q4 2022	Q1 2023	Q4 2023
Beans (100kg)	N28,000	N40,000	N40,000	N65,000
Yam (10 tubers mid-size)	N5,500	N9,000	N10,000	N13,000
Millet (100kg)	N26,000	N28,000	N28,000	N42,000
Local rice (100Kg)	N48,000	N60,000	N56,000	N90,000
Fresh pepper (1 small bsket)	N2,200	N4,000	N3,600	N5,200
Tomatoes (1 small basket)	N2,500	N4,200	N4,000	N6,000
Foreign rice (100KG)	N27,000	N33,000	N35,000	N54,000
Maize	N26,000	N28,000	N32,000	N44,000

	Q1 2022	Q4 2022	Q1 2023	Q4 2023
Beans (100kg)	N28,000	N40,000	N44,000	N68,000
Yam (10 tubers mid-size)	–	–	–	–
Millet (100kg)	N22,500	N40,000	N40,000	N48,000
Local rice (100Kg)	N40,000	N60,000	N68,000	N96,000
Fresh pepper (1 small bsket)	N2,800	N4,500	N4,800	N6,000
Tomatoes (1 small basket)	N2,400	N3,800	N4,500	N6,500
Foreign rice (100KG)	N28,800	N39,600	N41,400	N68,400
Maize	N26,000	N44,000	N46,000	N51,200

	Q1 2022	Q4 2022	Q1 2023	Q4 2023
Beans (100kg)	N35,000	N49,000	N59,500	N80,500
Yam (10 tubers mid-size)	N3,500	N4,700	N5,000	N9,000
Millet (100kg)	N22,500	N37,000	N40,000	N49,000
Local rice (100Kg)	N56,000	N70,000	N77,000	N112,000
Fresh pepper (1 paint basket)	N1,750	N1,500	N1,800	N1,800
Tomatoes (1 small basket)	N1,500	N800	N1,000	N1,200
Foreign rice (100KG)	–	N39,600	N41,400	N68,400
Maize	N22,500	N36,000	N42,000	N49,000

No doubt, the imposition of these levies on farmers contributes to the hike in food prices and makes the affordability of food hard for many, resulting in food insecurity.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), food insecurity occurs when people do not have adequate physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious foods that meet their dietary needs and preferences for an active and healthy life.

Currently, Nigeria is home to about 18.6 million people who are food insecure. These figures have been projected to increase to 26.5 million in the June-August 2024 lean season should this issue and other factors contributing to food insecurity persist