Pig farmers in the Ikangba/Agoro axis of Odogbolu Local Government Area of Ogun State have demanded urgent government intervention after an outbreak of African swine fever allegedly caused losses exceeding N5bn and forced more than 99 per cent of farms in the area to close.

The farmers, under the aegis of the Ikangba-Agoro Pig Farmers’ Association, made the demand during a protest in Ikangba yesterday organised in collaboration with the Food and Farmers’ Rights Campaign.

The aggrieved farmers called on the Federal Government and the Ogun State Government to provide compensation, grants, soft loans and other forms of assistance to enable affected farmers to resume production.

Speaking at the protest, the Ogun State coordinator of the Campaign for Workers’ Democratic Rights, Mr. Eko John Nicholas, disclosed that tens of thousands of pigs had died from the disease, leaving more than 2,000 farmers facing severe financial difficulties.

Nicholas stated that the association’s losses extended beyond livestock to farm infrastructure, feed stocks, feed ingredients, revenue and other investments across the pig production value chain.

He added that the shutdown of farms had also rendered several farm workers jobless, worsening the economic hardship faced by affected households.

The farmers described the outbreak as the third major episode of African swine fever to devastate their investments in the past decade, accusing the federal and state governments of failing to provide adequate support despite the scale of the losses.

“Moving forward, we can no longer suffer and die in silence,” the association said, urging the authorities to intervene immediately to prevent the collapse of the local pig farming industry.”

One of the affected farmers, Folorunsho Ayodele, said he had lost pigs worth more than N18m, while a neighbour lost livestock valued at over N30m.

“The outbreak began about two months ago and over 2,000 farmers have lost their animals to this cruel disease. I personally lost over N18m; my pen houses are now empty. My own neighbour lost over N30m,” he said.

Ayodele said some of the dead pigs weighed more than 300kg, with a kilogramme selling for N2,500 and above, adding that many farmers had taken loans to finance their businesses.

“Many of us are on loans, and some are even in hospital because of the shock of these terrible losses. The experience is better imagined than experienced.”

He appealed to President Bola Tinubu and Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun to assist the affected farmers.

“We need all the support to go back to our business and continue to contribute our quota to our country’s development”.

Another farmer, Adeola Oyeleye, said she had lost investments worth more than N10m, adding that some farmers in the area had suffered losses exceeding N100m.

“I know of those who lost over N100m to this swine fever outbreak, so we are really overwhelmed by these terrible losses. We just beg the government to come to our aid”.

Oyeleye called for compensation, grants, low-interest loans and other forms of assistance to help farmers rebuild their businesses. She also urged the government to intensify efforts to develop a vaccine against the disease.

The association called for soft loans at single-digit interest rates, quality breeding stock, feed inputs and training for affected farmers. It also requested disease prevention and control materials, including disinfectants, protective boots and knapsack sprayers.

It urged the authorities to provide food and other relief materials for farmers struggling to support their families after losing their livelihoods, as well as social welfare and unemployment assistance for displaced farm workers.