Rice farmers in Abakaliki in Ebonyi State have raised concerns over incessant rainfall, which they say is threatening the 2025 rice production and harvest.
The farmers expressed their concerns in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria on Wednesday in Abakaliki.
It was amidst persistent downpours that have led to flooding, waterlogging, and crop losses across major rice-growing areas in the state.
A prominent rice farmer in Izzi Local Government Area of the state, Mr Emmanuel Nwali, said nearly half of his rice farm had been submerged due to the heavy rainfall.
“The floods have destroyed most of our work. What is left is already turning yellow.
“It has been raining almost daily since mid-July. We may not expect a bountiful harvest this season,” Nwali lamented.
Another farmer, Mr Chinedu Okenwa, said he lost his nursery beds to flooding, resulting in the loss of major resources.
“I don’t know how to make up for the losses because, as it stands, I cannot transplant. The nursery has been destroyed.
“We risk poor yield this season, and that may cause a sharp rise in the price of local rice next year. We are facing a difficult period due to the weather, ”Nwali lamented.
Similarly, Mr Aloysius Njoku, a commercial rice farmer, said he had lost a large portion of his rice farm to flooding and feared the development would negatively affect the harvest.
“The rains and the attendant flooding have been so devastating. If nothing is done, rice will become scarce and expensive, and everyone will feel it,” Njoku said.
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