The Smallholder Women Farmers Organisation in Nigeria (SWOFON), Oyo State chapter, has said that the lack of irrigation facilities had become a major obstacle to dry season farming in the state.

The Chairperson of SWOFON in Oyo State, Atinuke Akinbade, said this in an interview in Ibadan on Monday.

Akinbade, who shared the experiences of women farmers in the state during the 2025 dry season, said that inadequate access to water for irrigation significantly affected the performance of many farmers during the period.

“It hindered many older farmers from participating in dry season farming and also prevented younger farmers from doing as much as they could in cultivating large acres of land,” she said.

Akinbade explained that farmers who managed to plant during the season struggled to access sufficient water to irrigate their farms, a situation worsened by the effects of climate change.

“Many farmers who depended on streams and wells to water their crops suffered major setbacks because those sources could not provide enough water for irrigation.

“Some farmers had to resort to buying water from commercial water tankers, which increased the cost of production, while at times it was even difficult to get water from the tankers,” she said.

The SWOFON chairperson warned that failure to address the problem could worsen food insecurity in the coming months.

“Even now, rainy season farming has not fully commenced because of the irregular rainfall pattern.

“This is a double burden, and if nothing is done, it may lead to serious hunger later,” she said.

Akinbade, however, acknowledged that the government had organised training for members of the association on home gardening.

She, however, said that little support was provided to address the challenges of dry season farming.

The chairman said that the home garden support package given to members consisted mainly of seedlings and one sprayer.

“They gave us two packs each of maize and pepper seeds, with six seeds in each pack, as well as one sprayer, so that we can grow food for household consumption,” she said.

Earlier, Oluwatoyin Oyedeji, SWOFON Coordinator in Oyo East, explained the severe hardship members of the organisation experienced in sourcing water for irrigation.

“Many farmers are already counting their losses because water was not available to irrigate their farms.

“Those who depended on streams and brooks were badly affected because many of them dried up, while the few that still had water had so little that farmers had to dig deeper into the ground in search of more,” Oyedeji said.

In the same vein, the Women Leader for farmers in Saki East, Musiliu Ashiru, said the absence of irrigation facilities also hampered dry season farming in her area.

According to her, many farmers still engaged in dry season farming have had to pay for water to keep their crops alive.

“Many of them buy water from the dam here to irrigate their crops. It has not been easy for them this year,” Ashiru said.

Nigeria’s agricultural sector has seen a significant surge in investment, rising 224 percent in one year amid escalating insecurity in the country.

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) capital importation report showed that foreign direct investment (FDI) in the agric sector hit $167.

On a quarter-on-quarter basis, investment into the sector surged 216 percent to $51.

Prior to 2022, investments in the sector had grown consistently at an annual average of 82 percent since 2016, but then reversed in 2022 and continued to decline through 2024, before rebounding in 2025, according to BusinessDay’s analysis.

Experts in the sector attributed the surge to renewed investor interest amid favourable government policies, including importation waivers.

“The economic reforms that restored investors’ confidence and the government’s continuous support to the sector are major drivers of these investments,” said AfricanFarmer Mogaji, chief executive officer, Agbado Value-Chain Ltd

“Also, the country’s growing population always makes the industry attractive for investors, as people must eat. This increased the number of investors, domestically and foreign, who invested in the industry,” Mogaji said.

Nigeria’s agricultural industry experienced several shocks in 2025 that disrupted the food systems and hampered productivity.

High insecurity has significantly impacted farming activities in the country, with the situation intensifying in 2025, forcing many farmers to abandon their farmlands.

Prices of key inputs such as seeds, herbicides, pesticides, fertilisers, and agro machinery tripled in 2025 due to the naira devaluation and spikes in headline inflation.

The surge in production costs, combined with low food prices, eroded farmers’ ability to recover investments made during the 2025 season, leaving many with huge financial losses.

Similarly, the increasing impact of climate change on communities disrupted farming activities during the year. While no country is immune to the impacts of climate change, Nigeria is among the countries that are most vulnerable and least able to cope with the impacts of a changing climate.

The fishing industry, which is one of the sub-sectors of the agricultural industry, attracted a $5.1 million investment in 2025 from zero investments in 2024.

The sector grew by 2.92 percent in 2025 as its performance was significantly impacted by increased youth participation and rising investment in mechanised farming.

The All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Lagos State Chapter, has lauded the Federal Government’s approval of 57 crop varieties to strengthen agricultural productivity in the country.

The Lagos State AFAN Chairman, Sakin Agbayewa, disclosed this in an interview yesterday in Lagos.

The Nigerian Federal Government approved 57 new improved crop varieties to boost food security, improve nutrition, and strengthen agricultural productivity.

The crops, selected for early maturity, higher yields, and resistance to pests and diseases, include 14 different types of staples, with notable advancements in rice, maize, yam, soybean, and plantain.

Agbayewa noted that the approval of the crop varieties would help improve the yields of farmers in the state.

“We are excited to hear about the 57 new varieties of crops recently approved.

“What we desire currently in crop farming is not just about planting, it is about increased yield.

“A farmer can have a plot of land and have a high yield and another can have big plots of land and have a low yield.

“So, if we are talking about food security, it starts from the varieties you are planting and it starts from the seedlings.

“Improved seed varieties as well as improved seedlings will always give you higher yield on minimal land.

“You can barely imagine the higher yield farmers with larger land size will get with improved seedling varieties,” Agbayewa said.

He described the introduction of the crops as a new development for crop cultivation.

“So, for us as an association, the introduction of the 57 crop is a good development for crop cultivation.

“It will help to curb the food insecurity we are talking about and shortage of food in the near future. It is a good one.

“This newly approved 57 crop varieties should however be popularised among local farmers because not everyone is aware of this latest development.

“There are a lot of issues currently affecting the cultivation of crops and the development of improved crop varieties will help the farmer’s productivity.

“Issues such as climate change effects, inconsistent rainfall patterns and weather clash among others are affecting farmers’ yield.

“So, what we want now is to have improved crop varieties that will give us higher yield,” he said.

Agbayewa said there should be massive advocacy of the approved crop varieties across the board for farmers.

“There should be a massive advocacy of the approved crop varieties across the board so that our farmers will be able to eat from their sweat and at the same time save the nation.

“We are excited that this new crop variety was done in Nigeria and not by foreigners. It shows that our researchers are now waking up.

“The government is now waking up to their responsibility.

“So, we are now growing our own and eating our own varieties, which is good. And we are calling for more research like this to be done.

“With more researches done,