The North-West Agricultural Commodities Association has urged the Federal Government to urgently implement realistic and effective measures to bring down the high cost of farming inputs across the country.

The association said such steps were necessary to complement existing efforts aimed at achieving sustainable food security in Nigeria.

These recommendations were part of resolutions reached at the end of the association’s quarterly meeting held on Tuesday in Kaduna.

The North-West Agricultural Commodities Association is a coalition of farmers, youths and cooperative groups operating across various segments of Nigeria’s agricultural value chain.

Speaking to journalists after the meeting, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the association, Shu’aibu Idris, warned that the prevailing high cost of agricultural inputs could discourage many large-scale farmers from engaging in farming activities by 2026.

Idris lamented that farmers were currently facing what he described as a serious existential crisis, noting that the rising cost of inputs was sharply contrasted with the low prices of food produce in the market.

He cited the cost of fertiliser as a major challenge, stating that a bag of NPK or Urea fertiliser now sells for between N70,000 and N80,000.

The association’s leader cautioned that if farmers were discouraged from food production, the country could face severe consequences, including hunger, malnutrition and rising unemployment.

Idris also called on the Federal Government to urgently halt frequent policy reversals in the agricultural sector, stressing that agriculture remains one of the oldest sectors of the economy and contributes significantly to Nigeria’s gross domestic product.

He further appealed for the provision of adequate and affordable modern agricultural implements to enhance mechanisation, noting that easy-to-use tractors and other equipment were readily available to farmers in other parts of the world.

Similarly, Idris called for the introduction and sustenance of agricultural subsidies, insisting that such support was standard practice in many developed countries, including the United States.

He also appealed to state governors, particularly those in the North-West region, to work together to improve funding for agriculture in order to strengthen food security.

Idris added that the association was willing and ready to partner with the Federal Government to support the actualisation of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda in the agricultural sector.