Prospect and Challenges of Farming along the Hadejia-Nguru Wetland in Jigawa State Nigeria

Jigawa State has high potentials for agricultural production for household consumption, commerce and industry uses. Over 70% of the State’s landmass is considered arable which make it one of the most agriculturally endowed State in Nigeria.. However, over the years the area covered by this potential agricultural land has been bedeviled by the problems of flooding, Typha grass and Migratory birds. This research focused on the challenges and prospect of agricultural production as well as rural livelihood in Hadejia-Nguru wetland area in Jigawa State. Data collection was done through focus group discussion (FGD) which involved groups of Farmers who actively involved in both rainy season and dry season farming in Miga, Kaugama and kafin Hausa local governments of Jigawa state. A total of 360 farmers had been selected through purposive sampling. Results of the FGD showed that flood, migratory birds and typha grass played an important role in determining agricultural output and rural livelihood in the study areas. In conclusion, It was suggested by all the communities visited among others that there should be controlled release of dams during dry season which will provide adequate irrigation water to the farmers in dry season as well as drastically reduce the volume of the water which could prevent overflowing in rainy season. Similarly the farmers recommended that the government should increase its subsidized fertilizer allocations substantially so that more famers can access cheaper fertilizer thereby lowering their cost of production and increase production