Obasanjo Declares a

Obasanjo Declares a "National Beans Emergency"

Burtonsville, MD, 20866

The recent decision by President Obasanjo to import beans from Burkina Faso has been received with quite a number of hoots from various quarters, with the National Assembly in fact voting recently to stop him from doing so. The premise is that Nigeria still being a largely agricultural country - never mind all the oil - we have no business importing beans from any country, let alone nearby Burkina Faso.

The decision to cheer or jeer this seemingly hilarious decision of carrying coal to Newcastle must be based on a sound analysis of the facts, as I have been able to determine so far:

1. Beans is one of the MOST DIFFICULT of staple foods to grow, having one of the LOWEST yields (roughly 0.25 - 0.5 tonnes/acre) compared with cassava (13-27 tonnes per acre), yet the weight per typical meal for both are the same (roughly 1 - 2 pounds / person- meal. Let us put it at 1 kg / person-meal. 1 kg = 2.2 pounds). See Table 1 below. It is also very susceptible to attack by boll-weevils.

2. In 1998, about 2 million tonnes (or 2000 million kg) of beans were produced in Nigeria. With 100 million people, that is 20 kg per person in 1998 - or on average 20 meals for the whole year! During the four year period preceding 1998, the average national domestic price varied two-fold. [See Table 2.] Of course, not everybody eats beans - but you get the point about the beans shortfall and cost crunch.

3. If anybody considers Obasanjo unfit to continue as president beyond 2003, it should not be over this "beans emergency" saga. That Obasanjo "orders" importation of beans - because he has, in his wisdom, determined that there is a "beans emergency" in the country - does not stop local beans planters from bringing theirs to the market, nor should it stop those who wish to increase production. No numbers about how much he will import have even been mentioned, and already people are hooting.

4. Nevertheless, the decision again shows that he (as the executive of a central government) is involving himself in TOO MANY THINGS from the center! It is reported, for example that he ordered the beans because he PERSONALLY saw a pile of beans in Burkina Faso. But suppose he had not? What has his agriculture minister doing all of this time? The state ministers of agriculture? The local government councillors? That is the trouble with this beans issue.

5. Since the cropping time for beans is 3 - 6 months, one will want to see - as part of Obasanjo's emergency actions - a plan to INCREASE the domestic production of beans by charging STATE and particularly LOCAL governments - through CATEGORICAL and/or BLOCK GRANTS - to be partners in the process. The same applies to other food crops, if we are to be self-sufficient in food in our country.

6. As President Obasanjo prepares to come to the US for the fifth or sixth time in 2 years next week, AGRICULTURE is one area that the US government, through the US Department of Agriculture, can be asked to assist Nigeria in many ways, not just the usual talk of DEBT RELIEF, OIL INVESTMENT and REGIONAL SECURITY.

So whether we criticise this "Burkina Beans" decision or not, let us do so from an informed stance, and let us broaden the complaint to include food security nationwide.

Have a good week-end.

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TABLE 1: Some information on some food items

-------------------------------------------------------------------- Food Plant-Harvest Yield Yield 1998 Nigeria Item Cycle (months) tonnes production per acre '000 tonnes -------------------------------------------------------------------- Rice 4-6 months 4000-8000 lbs/acre 2-4 3,486

Cassava 4-7 months 13-27 tons/acre 13-27 34,092

Beans 3-6 months 1000-2000 lb/hectare 0.25-0.5 2,054

Yam 8-11 months 5-15 tonnes/hectare 2 - 6 25,102

Cocoyam 6-18 months 10-30 tons/hectare 4 - 12 1,450

Sweet Potato 4-6 months 20-30 tonnes/hectare 8 - 12 105

------------------------------------------------------------------ Sources:

ftp://www.usarice.com/publish/rice.htm

http://www.usarice.com/ Facts about USA Rice

http://www.calrice.org/environment/balance-sheet/chap1.html Land Use as it Relates to Rice Production, General Features of Rice Cultivation

http://www.fao.org/WAICENT/faoinfo/economic/giews/english/fs/fs9806/pa ys/weaf9806.htm Some Agric Info on West Africa

http://muextension.missouri.edu/xplor/agguides/crops/g04361.htm Agricultural publication G4361 — Reviewed October 1, 1993

http://www.geocities.com/NapaValley/Vineyard/9119/c0071.html What is Cassava? - more about cassava in Africa and elsewhere

http://www.cassavachips.com/cassava.html Indies International Cassava Chips

http://isp.msu.edu/CRSP/crsphc.htm Bean/Cowpea CRSP - CONTRIBUTIONS TO AGRICULTURE IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

http://www.ext.nodak.edu/extpubs/plantsci/rowcrops/a1133-1.htm #Estimation Dry Bean Production Guide A-1133, July 1997 Published in cooperation with Northarvest Bean Growers Association

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Table 2: Estimated Output of Some Agricultural Commodities in Nigeria

Production ('000 tonnes) Average Nat. Price (N/tonne) 1994 1998 1994 1998 Staples -------- Maize 6,902 6,285 6,646 29,983 (shelled) Rice 2,427 3,486 21,717 45,454 (husked) Wheat 35 51 N/A N/A Beans 1,545 2,054 22,412 44,396 white pea Cassava 31,005 34,092 12,321 25,595 garri Potatoes 90 105 N/A N/A Yam 23,153 25,102 8,599 29,506 white Cocoyam 1,128 1,450 N/A N/A Plantain 1,665 1,809 N/A N/A Vegetables 2,843 4,018 N/A N/A

Other Crops ------------ Groundnut 1,453 2,227 14,557 50,462 (shelled) Soyabeans 178 326 Palm Kernel 503 550 Palm Oil 837 780 Groundnut Oil 429 470 Cocoa 323 340 Sugarcane 633 620 Palm Wine 5,444 7,102

Livestock --------- Poultry Meal 63 77 Goat Meat 80 96 Beef 183 202 Pork 25 45 Milk 951 991 Eggs 377 436

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Source: CBN: Annual Report and Statement of Accounts, For the Year Ended 31st December, 1998 (published 29th April, 1999)

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