Afenifere has expressed concern over increasing attacks and kidnappings affecting farmers in South West Nigeria and warned that insecurity could worsen agricultural production and food availability.
The pan Yoruba organisation said some farmers had abandoned their land because of fear of abduction, ransom demands and violent attacks.
Its spokesman Jare Ajayi cited incidents in Ondo, Ogun, Oyo and Osun states.
Those accounts included killings, kidnappings and an unresolved abduction in which relatives were reportedly asked for additional ransom after an earlier payment.
Some of the claims were attributed to local sources and were not independently verified in the source material.
Afenifere also referred to concerns previously raised by the All Farmers Association of Nigeria that persistent insecurity was discouraging investment and reducing agricultural productivity.
The group said farmers it encountered in parts of Oyo and Ondo described three major problems: insecurity, low farm gate prices and damage to crops from open grazing.
One farmer was quoted as saying insecurity had forced him to abandon a sizeable farm producing cassava, cocoa, yam and plantain.
Afenifere also cited an agricultural association official who said production of cowpea and beans had fallen sharply in parts of northern Nigeria.
The group warned that continued insecurity could contribute to future food shortages.
It welcomed President Bola Tinubu’s directive for a national threat assessment and a rolling five year strategic defence operations plan.
Afenifere proposed a combination of military action, improved border control, community policing and stronger sanctions against kidnapping and banditry.
Pending the establishment of state police, the organisation called on South West governors to expand the Amotekun security network.
It recommended more personnel, modern communications equipment, operational vehicles and surveillance drones.
The group also proposed specialised ranger units for forest reserves and stronger intelligence sharing with hunters and community vigilante groups.
It urged states to enforce anti open grazing laws and improve security checkpoints along vulnerable borders.
Afenifere said restoring confidence among farmers was essential not only for security but also for food production and rural livelihoods.
