Reviving Nigeria's Troubled Agricultural Value Chain

The Nigerian government's decision to eliminate illegal checkpoints and harmonize levies across the country has been welcomed by the Tomato and Orchard Producers Association of Nigeria (TOPAN), led by President Bola Oyeleke. Oyeleke, in an interview, highlighted the devastating impact of unauthorised checkpoints on the agricultural sector, causing increased post-harvest losses, extortion, food inflation, and hardship for smallholder farmers. He emphasized the need for a centralized and harmonized taxation system to replace the fragmented and often illegal levies encountered by food transporters and traders.

Key Takeaways:

• The presence of unauthorised checkpoints on major roads has posed a serious threat to the movement of perishable goods, especially vegetables and tomatoes, resulting in increased post-harvest losses and food inflation.
• Illegal checkpoints cause significant delays, damage due to lateness, and lead to frequent extortion and harassment of truck drivers, sometimes resulting in accidents and damage to goods being transported.
• Multiple taxation both on the road and in the markets continues to weigh heavily on the entire supply chain, from farmers to marketers, affecting food prices and farmer profitability.
• Small-scale farmers are forced to sell at very low prices to ensure their goods make it to major markets, with reduced farm gate prices offered by middlemen accounting for transportation and checkpoint-related costs.
• The resilience of smallholder farmers is admirable, but the system continues to work against them unless structural reforms like removing illegal checkpoints and streamlining taxation are fully implemented.
• TOPAN President Bola Oyeleke has called for a comprehensive review of the agricultural value chain to address the systemic issues affecting the sector.

Statistics:

• 70% of Nigeria's agricultural products are transported by road, making the sector vulnerable to the challenges posed by unauthorised checkpoints (Source: Daily Independent).
• Over 70% of smallholder farmers export their produce to major markets, where they face lower farm gate prices and reduced profitability (Source: Tomato and Orchard Producers Association of Nigeria).
• The average cost of transportation for a ton of tomatoes from the farm to the market is N50,000, with most farmers earning between N30,000 to N40,000 per ton (Source: Daily Independent).

Sources:

• Daily Independent
• Tomato and Orchard Producers Association of Nigeria (TOPAN)
• Nigeria Governors' Forum