₦airaland Forum

Every year, we hear people say agriculture is the future. We also see government programs, private investments, and countless campaigns encouraging young people to go into farming.

Yet many farmers are still complaining.

Not because they don't know how to farm.

Not because there are no buyers.

But because of one issue that doesn't get enough attention: payment and funding.

Imagine spending months cultivating your crops or raising livestock, only to supply a buyer and wait several weeks—or even months—to get paid.

How do you pay your workers?

How do you buy feed, fertilizer, or seeds for the next production cycle?

How do you keep your business running?

Now add another problem.

Most smallholder farmers can't easily access loans because they don't have collateral, formal financial records, or a credit history. Banks see agriculture as risky, so many genuine farmers are left without the support they need to grow.

Cash transactions make things even worse. Without proper transaction records, it's harder to build trust, access financing, or prove your business performance.

The truth is that these problems don't affect only farmers. They affect everyone in the agricultural value chain—buyers, processors, transporters, exporters, retailers, and ultimately consumers.

This is why digital platforms are becoming increasingly important. They can help improve transparency, simplify transactions, connect stakeholders, and create better opportunities across the agricultural ecosystem.

One platform I recently came across is Avestack. From what I've seen, it's building a digital ecosystem where different players in agriculture can connect, collaborate, and grow together.

If you're involved in farming or agribusiness, you may want to check it out and see how it works:
👉 https://avestack.com

I'd also like to hear from people here.

- Have you ever struggled to receive payment after supplying farm produce?

- Have you tried getting an agricultural loan? What was your experience?

- What do you think is the biggest challenge holding Nigerian agriculture back?

Let's discuss. Real experiences may help others in this section.

U know the name of Agriculture Minister without google?

If you start from there, then you know the answer

slimjohn2k5:
U know the name of Agriculture Minister without google?

If you start from there, then you know the answer

That's a fair point. Government policies and leadership definitely play a major role in agriculture.

But even beyond government, I think there are issues within the agricultural value chain that we also need to talk about.

For example, a farmer can have good land, produce a good harvest and still struggle because of access to finance, reliable buyers, timely payment and proper market connections.

So I'm curious, from your experience, which one do you think is the bigger problem: government policy, access to funding, or the way farmers are connected to the market?

I will come back to reply you. Cheers.

You think the problem is just payment gateway

That's the least

soccerlite:
You think the problem is just payment gateway

That's the least

You're right, payment is definitely not the only problem, and I didn't mean to suggest that it is.

I focused on payment and funding because they are often overlooked when discussing the challenges in the agricultural value chain.

But I'd genuinely like to hear your perspective.

If payment is the least of the problems, what would you say are the top 3 problems Nigerian farmers are facing today?

Let's hear from someone who has a different view. 👍🏽

dorispray:
You're right, payment is definitely not the only problem, and I didn't mean to suggest that it is.

I focused on payment and funding because they are often overlooked when discussing the challenges in the agricultural value chain.

But I'd genuinely like to hear your perspective.

If payment is the least of the problems, what would you say are the top 3 problems Nigerian farmers are facing today?

Let's hear from someone who has a different view. 👍🏽

Insecurity and poor road infrastructure

High price of input
Price volatility

soccerlite:
Insecurity and poor road infrastructure

High price of input
Price volatility

Those are valid points, especially price volatility.
A farmer can produce successfully and still lose money if the market price drops at harvest.

I'm curious though, among these three, which one do you think has the biggest direct impact on a smallholder farmer, and why?

dorispray:
Every year, we hear people say agriculture is the future. We also see government programs, private investments, and countless campaigns encouraging young people to go into farming.

Yet many farmers are still complaining.

Not because they don't know how to farm.

Not because there are no buyers.

But because of one issue that doesn't get enough attention: payment and funding.

Imagine spending months cultivating your crops or raising livestock, only to supply a buyer and wait several weeks—or even months—to get paid.

How do you pay your workers?

How do you buy feed, fertilizer, or seeds for the next production cycle?

How do you keep your business running?

Now add another problem.

Most smallholder farmers can't easily access loans because they don't have collateral, formal financial records, or a credit history. Banks see agriculture as risky, so many genuine farmers are left without the support they need to grow.

Cash transactions make things even worse. Without proper transaction records, it's harder to build trust, access financing, or prove your business performance.

The truth is that these problems don't affect only farmers. They affect everyone in the agricultural value chain—buyers, processors, transporters, exporters, retailers, and ultimately consumers.

This is why digital platforms are becoming increasingly important. They can help improve transparency, simplify transactions, connect stakeholders, and create better opportunities across the agricultural ecosystem.

One platform I recently came across is Avestack. From what I've seen, it's building a digital ecosystem where different players in agriculture can connect, collaborate, and grow together.

If you're involved in farming or agribusiness, you may want to check it out and see how it works:
👉 https://avestack.com

I'd also like to hear from people here.

- Have you ever struggled to receive payment after supplying farm produce?

- Have you tried getting an agricultural loan? What was your experience?

- What do you think is the biggest challenge holding Nigerian agriculture back?

Let's discuss. Real experiences may help others in this section.

I guess you are not a real farmer from your writeup,I am a pepper farmer in imo state and my customers has already called me this monday morning to book for 3 bags of hot pepper they will sell on Wednesday with cash ready.the problem is production not marketing.especially in the southeast.

Over here in Ogun State, if you properly understand market dynamics for your selected crop enterprise, you'll so much cash out that people will assume you did ritual.

By market dynamics, I don't mean targeting festive seasons oo because that is what most farmers do.