In Nigeria, agricultural extension plays a critical role in bridging the gap between research institutions and farmers’ fields, providing farmers with the essential knowledge, skills, new technologies, and best practices needed to improve crop yields, promote sustainable farming methods, and ultimately enhance food security and rural development by facilitating the adoption of innovative agricultural practices across the nooks and crannies of the country. It also provides the necessary feedback for research and policymaking.
Thus, well-functioning agricultural extension services are critical to the successful adoption of improved technologies to achieve increased productivity, pest and disease control, climate resilience and food security.
However, at the moment, the quality of the agricultural extension delivery system has been declining as a result of decreased funding, understaffing, policy changes, and young people’s lack of interest in agricultural entrepreneurship – their perception of farming being antiquated and unprofitable.
According to the available data, the farmer-to-extension agent ratio in Nigeria is estimated to be between 1:5,000 and 1:10,000, meaning that one extension agent is responsible for reaching out to a very large number of farmers, highlighting a significant shortage of extension workers in the country; one of the lowest ratios in Africa.
This shortage invariably hinders the adoption of new technologies and best practices by farmers. Against this backdrop, the administration of Alhaji Umar Namadi in Jigawa State designed a well-thought-out project to enhance the capacity of agricultural graduates and empower them to serve as extension agents thereby reducing farmer/extension agent ratio and enhancing farmers’ access to advisory services across the state.
The initiative recruited, trained and equipped 1,440 agricultural graduates from the 288 wards of the state with the necessary knowledge, skills, and resources needed to play a critical role in extending modern agricultural practices, so as to bridge the gap between research, technology adoption and improving the numerical strength and quality of extension delivery system, in Jigawa State.
Under this initiative, the number of extension agents has almost doubled and well-positioned to provide better services because of the following reasons:
The extension agents were carefully and specifically selected based on their respective qualifications in agriculture. More so, the extension agents were posted to their immediate or very close community, which will reduce high transportation costs that could hinder effective discharge of extension duties.
Equally, the extension agents are technology compliant, i.e., capable of leveraging ICT tools for effective dissemination of agricultural innovations. In addition, they are well and adequately trained with the necessary knowledge, skills required of modern extension delivery.
Above all, considering the fact that those engaged were youths, they are highly motivated, and incentivized to perform optimally.
With this extension repositioning model, Jigawa is set to be positioned as the state with the lowest farmer/extension agent ratio and most effective extension service delivery in Nigeria.
This singular act of foresight, wisdom and forwardness has unequivocally proven yet – again, the governor’s consistent demonstration of unwavering commitment to advancing and prioritising agricultural extension delivery which is recognised as the cornerstone to the state’s agricultural development worthy of emulation by other states across Nigeria.
Lest I forget, His Excellency’s keen attention is requested to be given to factors leading to youth migration to urban areas, as economic constraints facing youths in agriculture, is one factor too small to be ignored. Likewise, it implored that the number of beneficiaries would be doubled in the 2025 fiscal year, and be properly trained, supervised and monitored for effective deliverance.
Imam Isah Musa, PhD, National Agricultural Extension Research and Liaison Services, ABU, Zaria