Horticultural production largely takes place in Northern Nigeria, and in particular in the states of Kano, Kaduna and Sokoto. Farmers cultivate tomato, onion, peppers and cabbages often with irrigation in open field production systems. Yields are relatively low at on average 5 t/ha for tomato.
Medium to high-tech production systems are being introduced on a limited scale in the South-West and around larger metropolitan areas across Nigeria. In these settings, yields are higher, ranging between 10 and 50 t/ha with use of specialty inputs, planting in beds and irrigation. In professional greenhouses higher yields are achieved which go up to 15 kg/m2 per production cycle. Due to the higher costs for land, inputs and labour, competitiveness remains a challenge.
The North mainly produces during the dry season, with the rainy season reserved for cereals and legumes. As such, the main vegetable production season runs from October till March. Combined with the highly perishable nature of most of the vegetables prices are volatile, reaching peaks in December, followed by very low prices during a glut in January and February. Good opportunities exist to grow outside this main season, using better seeds with increased resistances and some form of protection against the rain. However, this type of production is still limited and requires higher upfront investment.
Given the high price volatility combined with outbreaks of pests and diseases like tuta absoluta, vegetables can be seen as a gambling crop. This is further compounded by the high cost of logistics and food losses along the way. Farmers do not have the means nor incentives to invest in productivity improvements with current revenues and volatility. At the same time, good opportunities exist for increasing productivity and spreading production more evenly throughout the year. Pilot projects show that doubling productivity and income is feasible when using good agricultural practices and better inputs.
A singular and almost monopolized trade channel is possibly hindering quality and price improvement through absence of market dynamics. Current markets do not value quality and are unwilling to pay premiums for better quality produce. Innovations for aggregation, support services and logistics exist but SMEs struggle to reach scale without access to finance.
At a national level, dependency on one main production region brings a high risk of crop failure in case of a pest or disease outbreak. Diversification of production regions, production systems and market channels allows to spread risk, balance supply and demand, and create new market segments. Local processing could further reduce food losses and reduce influences of seasonality, if cost competitiveness can be achieved.
Several development programmes and projects are focusing on horticulture. Many of the recent initiatives concentrate on tomato in Kano, while other regions and crops offer good opportunities as well. There appears to be a lack of coordination in initiatives leading to overlap in activities. Several projects struggle with continuity after subsidized period ends.
Opportunities for Embassy involvement include:
- Increasing productivity and income for a large number of smallholder farmers in Northern Nigeria and bringing this to scale
- Piloting production systems innovation and regional diversification in South-West Nigeria
- Increasing access to finance for SME companies that invest in solving value chain bottlenecks at regional and national level
- Enhancing sector coordination and business-to-business linkages
Measuring impact will be important to learn about the (relative) success of approaches and interventions, as well as to accurately account for public funding. Professional and independent impact measurement is recommended to monitor and evaluate programme activities.