By Faridat Salifu
Farmers in Asa Local Government Area of Kwara State are counting heavy losses after an unexpected drought wiped out their crops, leaving households in debt and raising fears of looming food shortages.
The disaster followed what farmers described as a “false promise of rain” from the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), whose 2025 Seasonal Climate Prediction projected steady rainfall from May to November.
Instead, rains disappeared barely a month into the season, with no showers recorded between June and August—a period that farmers call the “heart of planting.” When rains eventually returned in September, many crops had already withered.
“It was the worst season we’ve seen,” said one farmer in Asa, who invested in fertilisers and improved seedlings but harvested nothing. “We trusted the forecast, but the sky failed us.”
The advocacy group, Kwara Must Change (KMC), said the failed forecast amounted to a betrayal of trust. Convener AbdulRazaq Hamzat argued that the setback goes beyond weather error, describing it as a “policy failure” that has left rural communities vulnerable.
According to him, the incident has dealt a blow to farmer confidence, food security, and household income in a state where agriculture remains the backbone of the economy.
KMC urged the Federal Government and NiMet to explain the forecasting error and provide safeguards against future failures. The group also demanded that the Kwara State Government immediately roll out relief packages for affected farmers to prevent hunger and worsening poverty.
“Institutions cannot afford to gamble with the livelihoods of thousands of rural households,” Hamzat said. “Without accountability, the trust between farmers and government agencies will collapse.”
Analysts warn that the crisis could ripple beyond Kwara, as unpredictable rainfall patterns linked to climate change pose fresh challenges for Nigeria’s rain-fed agriculture, which millions depend on.
KMC further recommended that Kwara establish its own localized weather monitoring systems to support farmers with real-time, community-based data, arguing that grassroots-driven forecasting could prove more reliable.
As farmers struggle to recover, many are already questioning whether they can survive another season of uncertainty, underscoring the urgent need for stronger climate adaptation strategies nationwide.
