By Tony Adibe
Rice farmers preparing for dry season farming in Enugu State have bemoaned the encroachment of cattle on their farmlands and destruction of the newly completed concrete canal facility at Ada Rice Irrigation System.
The multi-billion naira 22.45km long canal lining project was undertaken by the Federal Government under the Agricultural Transformation Agenda Support Program Phase-One (ATASP-1) with funding from the African Development Bank (AfDB). The project was designed to provide steady water supply to the over 1,500 hectares of rice field for dry season farming in the vast agrarian Uzo-Uwani Local Government Area of Enugu State.
NewsBits gathered that while the project was awaiting official commissioning and farmers getting prepared for commencement of first dry season farming early next year, hundreds of cattle have recently invaded the area, wreaking havoc on farmlands and irrigation facility.
A prominent farmer, who spoke under condition of anonymity due to security concern, disclosed that activities of cattle and their herders pose a serious threat to Federal Government’s quest to turn the irrigation command area into major rice production hub.
“We are still celebrating the completion of this gigantic irrigation project and making plans to commence dry season farming but what we are seeing in the rice farmlands are scary. Apart from the fact that they flooded the area with cattle, a lot of damage had already been done to the canal by cattle trying to cross through it.
“The rate at which they are going, I doubt if that facility can adequately supply water to the rice fields because of the breaches along the canal lines,” he said.
Another prominent farmer, who simply give his name as Chief Ben, called on the Federal, state and local government authorities to urgently come to their rescue to avert major drawbacks.
“I speak on behalf of other farmers in Uzo-Uwani council area whose lives and means of livelihood are in danger as a result of the activities of cattle in our farmlands. We are calling for urgent measures to address this challenge.
“It is a challenge because we have witnessed a lot of disruptions as a result of cattle and herders’ activities and despite repeated calls for them to steer clear of this area and allow us do our farming activities without fear, they kept coming.
“We believe this will derail the Federal Government aim to make this area a rice production hub”, he stressed. A female farmer, Mrs Roseline Monday, disclosed that she was forced to abandon her rice farm last season due to frequent attacks and killings in the area.
“We have been living in fear in recent times and could not visit our farms in far places because of attacks taking place there. “Now, we are excited that the canal had been completed and that we can start dry season farming, but that excitement has gone because of these cows that were roaming about everywhere.
“It is a big threat to our farming activities. Apart from damages they do to our crops, they also destroy canals which could also disrupt water flow through the channels”, Monday added. A youth farmer, who identified himself simply as Ifeanyi, stressed that most farmers are living in fear as a result of the development because of potential clashes that may escalate as a result of activities of cattle in the area.
“We are begging the government to come fast and rescue us from the hands of cattle rearers and their animal. “We don’t want to fight anyone. We just want to farm on our lands. But these animals pose a great threat to that”, he said.
Reacting, state Commissioner for Agriculture and Agro-Industrialisation, Dr Patrick Ubru, said that it was quite pathetic that cattle had destroyed a canal rehabilitated through state government’s counterpart funds running into several millions of naira. Ubru noted that his ministry was already working to repair the damaged canal, adding that the government was determined to make the Ada Rice Irrigation System work for the farmers and the state in general.
He said, “One wonders why herders will allow their cattle to destroy a canal just rehabilitated through counterpart funding and holds the livelihood of thousands of farmers and their families in that area. “We are in the process of taking statistics of farmers in that area, who will use the irrigation system for early next year dry seasoning farming before the unfortunate incident.
“We are not deterred, as we are working to get security personnel – vigilant group, Forest Guard and others – in that area to ensure it does not repeat and the huge investment work for our dry season rice farmers.”
