The unusual drought being experienced in some parts of the country has negatively affected over 70% crops in many farmlands especially in the southern senatorial zone of Plateau State.
Mr. John Chingdap Wuyep, the Plateau State Chairman of All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), made this known in an interview with our reporter on the devastating effects of the scarcity of the rainfall in the state.
The situation started in some areas when the farmers were anxiously waiting and counting days in expectation of the rainfall but unfortunately, days turned into weeks and weeks into over a month without a drop of rainfall in some of the affected areas.
Many farmlands and crops have withered and dried up leaving the farmers in despair and agony as the future remains blink if the rains do not return any time soon.
A video which surfaced online recently showed a farmer crying loud, weeping at the sight of his maize plantation which has been reduced to stalks of dried vegetation. Pictures also revealed the worried faces of the farmers in the southern parts of Plateau State.
“It is very unfortunate and pathetic. Most worrisome is when you go to the southern zone of Plateau where major crops have dried up. The maize plantations are totally gone, but I believe the Sorghum may revive if the rainfall comes back especially in Langtang South, Wase and parts of Kanam local government where they are most hit by the drought”, Mr. John Chingdap Wuyep lamented.
He called on all farmers to pray fervently for God’s intervention as the calamity can only be resolved by God because it is divine.
“So we are praying that the rain may come and when the rain comes we might plant some early maturing crops to subsidize that if not, already 70% have perish so it is a very major disaster to food security.
“In Plateau, we don’t have irrigation facilities which would have allowed us produce crops all year round like some states across the country. This is why in Plateau, we mostly farm during the rainy season only.
“So we cry to the government to make provisions such as creating creating Dams to encourage irrigation farming. We have water sources from Plateau, but we have not been harnessing them. There are some existing ones which have been abandoned for years. I think we can revive them because rain is already a challenge now.” Said the AFAN Chairman.
He attributed the ugly incident to the impact of climate change, saying sometimes the rain will fall heavily, make destruction and then disappear for long time.
Worried by the unfortunate development, the Taroh nation, one of the ethnic group in Plateau State on Saturday last week staged a prayer session with black attire to “hunt” for the rainfall in their locality.
Also, on Monday the District Head of Amper in Kanke local government area, HRH. Nde Kuphak Goma led his subjects on a clarion call for God’s divine intervention to ease the situation.
Addressing the large crowd that turned out for the prayer, the district head said, “though the issue is not peculiar to Amper a lone, but he called for prayers that whether you are a Christian, a Muslim, a traditional worshipper or even a free thinker, lets gather and pray in accord for God’s mercy.” He said.
The leadership of Church of Christ in Nations, COCIN Regional Church Council RCC Amper also declared a prayer and fasting among members for the rains.
Reacting to the development, Miss Martina Danuk, the Director of Environmental Assessment and Climate Change in the Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Mineral Development described as sad the incident and sympathized with farmers in the state.
She said the Plateau State Government is doing everything possible to construct Dams in some places to see that farmers have all year round water for both seasons farming.
“As government we are trying to see how we can get across to the National Seed Bank to see if we can get some improved seedlings that will take shorter time to germinate so that farmers will not become more devastating than what it is right now.”
She advised the public to think of mitigating the effects of climate change by replacing trees as they often cut the tress indiscriminately without replacement.
“What people don’t understand is that it is these trees that hold the water for you in the soil, it is these tree too that helps your crops to grow because when there is dew from the tree and it comes down, the crops under it will get some amount of rainfall that will help them grow.” She added.
About The Author
More Stories