Osun farm settlements, the underdeveloped food basket of the southwest

Abstract

Farm settlement scheme is an intervention of the government to promote efficient utilization of land resources and dignity in farming by the provision of basic social needs. This paper assessed the rate at which farm settlements in Osun state conformed with the stated objective of farm settlement in Nigeria. This research is conducted through observation tours to ten (10) farm settlement in Osun state: administration of structured questionnaire and Focus Group Discussion. Officers of the state ministry of Agriculture were interrogated to confirm efforts of the state government in the operation of the farm settlements in the state. Ten (10) percent of the total farmers in each farm settlements were selected and interviewed. The parameters of interest include: socio-economic and demographic characteristics, farm productivity, tillage methods, government response to their needs and suggestions on how farming problems can be addressed. The picture that emerges from the totality of the findings is that in spite of the feasibility of having huge farm settlements based on the richness and suitability of the land for agricultural and agro - allied uses, majority of the farmers engaged in subsistence farming. Critical examination of farmers education status showed that majority of them (95.3%) are educated which means that farmers in the zone have broken down the stereotype that farming is a job for the illiterates and old men. It was confirmed during Focus Group Discussion that young people in the settlement are embracing farming and struggling to increase the scale of their production. Problems observed during observation tours across the farm settlements include bad roads, lack of portable water, power supply, security issues, lack of media organization and basic social amenities. There is need for government to look inward and access the resources at its disposed by exploiting agricultural potential of the area for commercial purpose, so that the abundant wealth could be unraveled for the development of the state.