NCAM Efforts in Mechanizing Nigerian Agriculture

Efforts of National Centre for Agricultural Mechanization (NCAM) in Mechanizing Nigerian Agriculture

"An American farmer plays golf after a hard day’s job, using mechanised farming equipment to achieve great success and prosperity, while our Nigerian farmers retire to their poor homes with little or nothing to show for a hard day’s labour, using their hoe and cutlasses" - , Dr. AkinwumiAdesina,

The difference between Nigerian farmers and their American counterparts is the level of mechanization use in their production, processing and marketing of agricultural produce. While farmers in American use high level mechanization with an average capacity of one farmer producing food for five thousand people, his Nigerian counterpart can hardly produce food for 100 people per year.  The low level of mechanisation limits ability of farmers to expand cultivated areas, perform timely farm operations and achieve economies of scale in raising food production. This is because, in Nigeria, farming is still done with rudimentary equipments, land and labourand thus, the productivity is low. Low level of agricultural mechanization has  made farming to be unattractive  to the teeming population especially the youth, the leaders of tomorrow. The current level of mechanisation in Nigeria is estimated to be 0.03horse power per hectare as against the 1.5horsepowerperhectare recommended by FAO.  In 2013, the total number of tractors in Nigeria was estimated to be 30,000 of which over 50 per cent had broken down. Unfortunately, this situation has not significantly changed. The situation is worrisome when one considers the vast land existing in all corners of Nigeria. The country has about 84 million hectares of arable land of which only 40 per cent is cultivated. Indeed, not more than 10 per cent of the arable land is cultivated optimally, resulting into low productivity. Agricultural mechanization is the only answer to quadruple productivity in a short time and transform Nigeria to a self sufficient nation with capability of earning hard currency through massive food exportation.