Kano Farmers Project Increase in Tomato Price Over Dam Closure

Following the closure of the Tiga Dam in Kano State, tomato farmers in the state have expressed fear that tomato prices may rise this season, as the dam is the major source of irrigation water to about five Local Government Areas in the state that produce tomato and other perishables. According to the farmers, the closure, which commenced on November 1, 2021, and would last till March 31, 2022, has negatively affected farming activities in the areas, saying vast hectares of land have been left untended due to lack of water. It was gathered that many tomato farmers have already relocated to other places where they could get land close to water sources to grow tomatoes, while those that have gotten land to produce couldn’t do much due to lack of adequate space. Speaking on the development, the state chairman of the Tomato Out Growers Association of Nigeria (TOGAN), Alhaji Sani Danladi Yadakwari, said tomato farmers have used less than 10 per cent of the total land for growing tomato at Kadawa irrigation site due to the dam closure. He noted that tomato farmers in the state are in a serious problem, which would lead to tomato scarcity and price hikes. “Due to the dam closure, some of our members managed to clear some areas around the bank of River Kano to produce tomato, but this is less than 10 per cent of what we used to do at Kadawa irrigation site. For instance, during last year’s dry season, I cultivated 15 hectares, but I was only able to cultivate four hectares this year,” Yadakwari added. Also, a tomato marketer in Yan Kaba Vegetable Market in the state, Mansur Bello Seemon, said tomato supply to the market now comes from Zaria in Kaduna State and some parts of Katsina State, while tomatoes planted in the state were yet to get to the market. “Last year, tomatoes were everywhere in this market, but since the closure of Tiga Dam, we have been getting our tomato supply from Katsina and Zaria. A basket is now selling at N10,200 and all indications are showing that tomatoes will be very expensive this year,” said Seemon. Meanwhile, the management of the Hadejia Jama’are River Basin Development Authority (HJRBDA), which takes care of the dam noted that the decision to close the dam was because it was in dire need of repairs. Specifically, the agency’s Public Relations Officer (PRO), Malam Salisu Baba Hamza, explained that the repair was in line with the Transforming Irrigation Management in Nigeria (TRIMING) initiative, which is a World Bank-funded project to implement the rehabilitation of the Kano River Irrigation Scheme (KRIS) and Hadejia Valley Irrigation Scheme (HVIS). He added that before the closure of the dam, HJRBDA, farmers associations, Water Users Association (WUA) in the state and the management of TRIMING met and agreed on the timing for the closure.

Agro Nigeria