Private sector participation in Agriculture - Limitations and Losses arising from Land acquisition; A case Study of a proposed Farm in Kwara State.

Abstract

Land allocated to private investors often fails to meet the requirements for profitable production. In most cases, the investors are in the dark concerning the quality of the allocated land until they have paid the obligatory cost of compensation and land evaluation. A land suitability evaluation of 450 hectares of land allocated to an investor for rice seed production in Kwara state showed that only 20% of the land was potentially moderately (S2) suitable for the specified purpose while between 20% and 25% of the land was not suitable for agricultural activities. The remaining 55% to 60% was potentially either moderately (S2) or marginally (S3) suitable for cowpea,maizeorcassava.Thelimitingfactorsincludelow fertility,shallownessofsoil,presenceofplinthites at shallow depth, land degradation caused by gravel mining, rocky outcrop of various sizes and steep slope. The research concludes that the investor has lost substantially on land acquisition and evaluation and suggested that the State or Federal government should either provide a semi detailed soil survey map for area set aside for agriculture, or should indemnify the investor on all expenses incurred on land acquisition, compensation and survey, should such a land be found to be unsuitable for the purpose of its allocation.