Hydroponics - Soilless Cropping System, a Panacea to Perennial Nomadic - Fulani and Crops Farmers Conflicts in Nigeria? II

Apart from Boko Haram insurgence, Fulani - Farmers conflict is the most deadly and perennial conflict in Nigeria. Unlike Boko Haram insurgence, Fulani - farmers conflict is spontaneous and sporadic existing in many rural areas of both south and northern parts of Nigeria. Losses of lives and properties due to this singular crisis is colossal and beyond imagination. The conflict takes place in rural areas where news and events are under reported and mismanaged due to poor infrastructure and inaccessibility. The fundamental cause of the conflict is resource use; pasture and water. However, other factors such as religious and political differences as well as ethnicity inflame the conflict to unmanageable proportion. 

In an effort to search for pasture, Nomadic Fulani herdsmen move from North to central and southern part of the country. During this movement, they experience difficulties trying to feed their cattle especially in the dry season period and rainless months of the year, they only find solace in the green fields found along the rivers and valleys across the country. The major problem face while moving their cattle to these green fields is that these pastures are also dominated by farmlands. Naturally, farmers frown at the presence of herds of cows near their precious sources of livelihood thus, leading to frequent clashes between the Fulani herdsmen and local farmers. These clashes have been bloody with attendant losses of properties from both sides. The clashes have become perennial occurring all over the country with the use of sophisticated weapons and modern warfare tactics by both sides. The conflict has become a very serious security threat to the people of Nigeria and neighboring countries.

The need to address this conflict cannot be over emphasized. The problem attracted the attention of many spirited  Nigerians including national Assembly and Mr. President, Muhammadu Buhari. At the national Assembly level, a bill on grazing reserve was proposed by Senator Zainab Kure during one of the sessions of the 7th Senate of the Federal Public of Nigeria. The bill successfully passed the first reading and has been awaiting the attention of the distinguished  senators for the second reading at the present (8th) Senate. Similarly, President, Muhammadu Buhari   was recently reported saying "to achieve enduring peace in the country, greater effort must be made to eradicate poverty and injustice". He made this assertion when he received a delegation from the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue, an organization actively involved in the promotion of peace in Nigeria. On Fulani - farmers conflicts, President Buhari said that a plan to map out grazing areas will soon be presented to the Nigerian Governors Forum as a temporary solution to the frequent conflicts until cattle owners are persuaded to adopt other means of rearing their cattle. How are these cattle currently being reared?

Nigeria has an estimated 19.7 million Cattle. Nigeria is the biggest consumer of meat in the ECOWAS, with Lagos as the largest livestock market. Significant percentage of meat consumed in Nigeria comes from neighboring countries. Nigerians take meat availability in their markets for granted without bothering on the production challenges and sacrifices made by the producers - Fulani.

Nigeria has a land mass of 98.3 million hectares, 82 million hectares of arable land of which about 34 million hectares are currently under cultivation. In crop farming, human beings directly utilize only about a quarter of the total biomass. The other three quarters is in the form of crop residue and low quality crop, which is directly useless to humans. However, cattle (ruminants) convert these into high quality meat and milk. In addition to this, the cattle utilize grasses on fallow lands, non arable poor quality lands and open ranges. However, cattle move from one location to other to access these crops residue and posture. Movement of herds between fixed points to exploit seasonal availability of pastures has become part of livestock production process of the Fulani. This mode of production in Nigeria involves sending part or all of the herd to access crop residue in adjacent farms or graze in open range and in some cases even move further southwards as the dry season becomes more severe and returning home (North) with the advent of the rains. To further facilitate this movement, Governments over the years developed grazing reserves and demarcated interconnecting stock routes that have been in existence for a longtime. However, most of these routes have been encroached by farmers as the Nigerian population increases. Population increase has resulted in more land being put to crops production. It is an the irony that the same population growth demand for more food of animal origin which in turn calls for expansion of animal production without due regard of land  for livestock production.

With this clear picture of the situation, the Fulani - farmer conflict requires genius innovation to address it on sustainable manner. The innovation must be seen to create a win -win result for Fulani, farmers and indeed the rest of the population.  Can hydroponic system be one of such strategies?

Hydroponic can certainly be one of the strategies for massive production of animals' fodder in a very short time. Hydroponics is a system of growing crops without the use of soil. This is done by physically ‘feeding’ the plants with water for the crop to germinate, grow at high speed rate. Example a crop (barley) grown via hydroponics grows to a height of up to 15 cm in 7 days as compared to 12 weeks when grown in soil. Food grown through this system is nutrient rich, hygienic and reliable as it can be done throughout the year as it is not at the mercy of external weather conditions, For the production of fodder, barley is preferred in hydroponics rather than maize or sorghum as barley has a high protein level of as much as 23% as compared to other grains that record a high of 12- 19%. In the absence of barley, millet is a better substitute to maize as it can gives 17% protein.  Hydroponics system uses very small parcels of land. A hydroponic shelter measuring 5m long by 3m wide can produce 240 kg of fodder for cattle daily. The fodder is also 90 to 95 % digestible as compared to 40% of animal feed made from unsprouted grains.  The advantages of fodder produced hydroponically are numerous; there is an increase in the butter fat content of milk, a 14%  increase in cows on a diet of this fodder was recorded by many herders, a 21 % minimum increase in milk production over regular cows were noted and increase in appetite was similarly observed while female animals were observed to come on heat quicker with fodder produced using hydroponic system.

The most attractive part of producing fodder using hydroponic system is the simplicity of the process. The process involves soaking of seeds with water for four hours, sieve out the water after the four hours duration, incubate the wet seeds for 48 hours by covering them inside a container with holes for aeration. The incubated seeds are moisten with water at 12 hours interval ( about 10 centiliter of water to about 2 kg of seeds). After 48 hours, that is two  days, the 2 kg is spread over an aluminum tray of 30 cm by 1.2 m by then the seeds must have started sprouting. supply water to the sprouted seeds two times a day for up to additional four days and by then the fodder must have grown to the height of 12 - 17 cm ready for consumption.  The same fodder can be supplied to poultry, small ruminants and other animals but with differences in the number of days when the fodder was produced. However, the maximum production period is 10 days. A hydroponic structure with standard dimensions of 5m long by 3m wide by 3m high, can feed 60 pigs per day, 20 cows per day, 80 goats per day, 2,400 chicken per day, 480 rabbits per day.

Fodders provide 30% of the quality protein requirement of the animals daily but the animals still require energy and vitamins to grow healthy and productive. They have to be fed with 70% dry matter as source of energy for growth and milk production in addition to 30% hydroponic fodder as source of protein for milk synthesis.  An easy formula to determine a total feed requirement by one cow per day is 10% of its body weight in kilograms.  Example: If the cow is 200kg, the total amount of feed it requires is 20kg.  70% of 20 kg is 14kg – Feed 14kg as Dry Matter  30% of 20kg is 6kgs – Feed 6kgs as hydroponic fodder. salt lick should always be provided to animals for vitamins. Dry matter is recommended because the fodder lacks energy as much was utilized for germination and the dry matter is the major source of energy (Carbohydrates) to animals.

In conclusion, this option is readily available for transforming the nomadic nature of cattle production to the range system where the production is high, more profitable, sustainable and a solution to permanently solve Fulani - Farmers conflicts. National Agricultural Extension and Research Liaison Services (NAERLS) of Ahmadu Bello University is a willing partner with other stakeholders to extend this innovation through intensive training of herders and other interested livestock farmers. The Federal Government through the Federal Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Development should provide a leading role in this transformation process. Refutable organization like Miyeti Allah should take advantage of this option.