Agriculture
The natural resources of the state include agrobased resources such as cocoa, cassava, palm trees, rice, fish, sugar cane, raffia palm, maize and poultry. The mineral based resources include limestone, kaolin and petroleum.
Agriculture, Forestry and other Basic Activities:
Given the nature of the environment, past employment and productivity, there is no doubt that agriculture holds the future prospects for development and employment in Akwa lbom State. At the moment, agriculture is the most important economic activity in the state and contributes a large percentage to the state’s income that is second only to petroleum.
There are basically two types of agriculture in Akwa lbom. The first is the small-scale peasant farming usually practised on family basis, and which produces food crops such as cassava, maize, rice, yam and cocoyam for family consumption with the surplus sold in the local markets. The second type of farming is the estate farming which specialises in growing cash crops such as rubber, cocoa, rice and oil palm.
The major agricultural systems in Akwa lbom State consist of: (1) bush fallowing where land is cleared of the vegetation cover and cultivated for a period of one year and then allowed to remain fallow for another year; (2) the rudimentary system of sedentary cultivation in the densely population areas of Abak, Uyo, tkot Ekpene, Eket and Ikono LGAs. This type of cultivation is based on simple crop rotation and the use of manure on permanent and well-defined land holdings and compound areas; and (3) terrace agriculture which is practised in ltu because of its undulating topography. A fourth system is plantation agriculture which has been utilised for food production, notably, rice in northern Ikono by the Agricultural Development Programme (ADP). Plantation Agriculture is also involved in tree and cash crop cultivation as well as in the development of hybrid seedlings for distribution to farmers. The major location of this programme is at NIFOR at Abak.
The yields per hectare of most of the agricultural crops are low, due in part to poor manuring or the lack of fertilizer, poor soil conditions and low-grade seedlings. The sizes of farms are usually not more than one hectare per farming family. Problems confronting agricultural productivity in Akwa lbom State are many and complex. The acreage farmed by each individual family is small because of the population pressure on the land and the fragmentary land tenure system. Labour also limits the hectarage of crop because it is expensive and ineffective. Farming implements in most parts are still rudimentary which require a lot of energy in their usage. Farm tool rental is not yet developed in the state. Lack of developed irrigation system means that cropping has to rely on the rhythm of the rains.
When rain fails, most crops wither and die. The short duration of the fallow period sometimes leads to the prevalence of pests and diseases in particular farming areas.
Akwa lbom State is rich in marine fisheries. The state has a shallow continental shelf of about 624 sq. km. which provides good spawning grounds. Fishes of economic value in the state waters include catfish, rays, barracuda and sole fish. The major marine fishing ports in Akwa lbom State are Oron, Eket, Ikot Abasi and ltu. Freshwater fishing is carried out extensively in tree-trunk dug-out canoes used by the traditional fishing communities in all the riverine parts of the state. They build wattle shades along the coast where they dry the fish before transporting them to the local markets. An agglomeration of these shades is called “Ine” (fishing villages), which can be seen along the banks of the Cross River, the Qua River and the Imo River, and the numerous creeks in the mangrove environments in the State. The fresh-water species include Tilapia and catfish.
Fish farming in Akwa lbom State is a recent development. A number of privately-owned fish farms have sprung up at Ibiono and Eket. The state government has always encouraged fish farming projects. Both marine and fresh-water fishing in Akwa I born State are confronted with problems which include the lack of adequate infrastructural facilities such as modem terminals, cold storage plants, and dry docking which are pre-requisites for modem industrial fishing. Inland fisheries also suffer from the lack of adequate equipment and fingerlings.
Domestication of animals is quite an old activity in Akwa lbom State. However, until recently, animal husbandry was not regarded as a full-time agricultural occupation hence it is currently being taken up with considerable attention in the state. Because the supply of Zebu cattle from northern Nigeria is not meeting local demand, efforts are being made to cross-breed the Muturu with the Zebu which is more tolerant of the endemic trypanosomiasis disease.
At Nkari in Ikono LGA, sheep are doing well in spite of the fact that they are free-range. Goats are raised in virtually every household in the rural areas. Expanded breeding and production of goats are taking place at such locations as Nkari in Ikono, Abak and Ukanafun, where free-range of goats already show considerable promise.
Pigs thrive well in the State but a major problem is that of management. Birds are kept under the extensive system in the state and this results in low productivity and poor growth rate. However, high producing breeds have been introduced under well organised intensive systems with chicken hatcheries and feed mills such as the Regimen Farm at Ikot Ekpene and the Royal Farm at Ibiono.
Commercial rabbitries have now started featuring in the development of animal husbandry in Akwa lbom. In view of the great demand for meat in the state, there is a need to introduce exotic breeds of animals; and also consider factors such as the carrying capacity and the grazing pressure on available land.
Forestry: Akwa lbom State supports a wide range of tropical vegetation that can guarantee forestry as a viable economic venture. However, the dense human population in the State has profoundly altered the natural vegetation. Extensive clearing of the land for farming and the exploitation of timber have virtually destroyed much of the original rain forest cover which is now restricted to a few isolated locations of forest reserves, “juju” shrines, and plantations. Other areas designed “protected forests” are so-called because they are protected against indiscriminate felling of trees and clearing. The government has also embarked on forest plantations in Eket, Ikono, Oron, Abak, ltu and Ikot Abasi. The need to increase the hectarage of plantations and forest reserves should be stressed. The need for timber is increasing daily because of the demand for housing construction and furniture.