Irregular weather patterns, propelled by climate change, are impacting farmers and local communities in Nigeria. The communities are faced with uncertainties, including low crop yields, seed death, forced harvests, and displacements.
In Taraba State, it was learnt that farmers have lost crops worth millions of naira as there was no record of rainfall for about seven weeks. The harsh weather killed seeds and also affected the growth of crops, including maize, groundnut, rice, and melons.
The most affected areas include the Ardo-Kola, Gassol, Gashaka, Bali, Jalingo, Zing, Yorro, Lau, Ibbi, and Wukari local government areas of the state.
A farmer, Yarima Isa Tafida, said he lost all his seeds to the harsh weather. The seeds did not germinate, and he lost the entire investment, which ran into millions of naira.
Tafida lamented that he covered the farm with insurance, but the insurance was against flooding because the area is prone to flooding, and he was not anticipating drought.
The farmer lamented that he also planted cassava on his farm at Iware in Ardo-Kola LGA and suffered the same fate: the cassava stalks dried up because of the dry weather.
In Jagawa State, about 148 communities across 14 local government areas have been impacted by heavy rains that lasted several days and resulted in flooding. It was gathered that no fewer than 33 persons have lost their lives, while over 11,000 households have been displaced.
Also, over 50 communities in Rivers State have been forced to harvest their crops due to excess rains that have led to flooding of their farms. The communities in Ahoada West and Ahoada East suffer yearly flooding in their farms during the peak of the rainy season because they are low-land and swampy.
Some of the communities include Okarki, Mbiama, Joinkrama, Ogbogolo amongst others.
It was gathered that the forced harvest in these communities pushed down the prices of garri and the red potato species because people were forced to uproot their cassavas and potatoes.
A resident of Mbiama, Ahoada West, Rebecca, told our correspondent that hundreds of persons face hunger from November when their stored food crops begin to deplete.
