By: A G Abubakar

As the heated debate on Tinubu’s tax reform and the inherent derivation-based sharing principles of the VAT and related accruals ensues, it would be interesting to play the role of the devil’s advocate. Leaving experts, legislators and opinion leaders to pore over the technicalities, iniquities, and mechanics of the said bills.This position is by no means based on the merits or otherwise of the proposed reform itself, but rather on the understanding that the status quo has not worked for the ordinary man in the region.The North has been having a raw deal at the hands of its leaders over the past decades. Yes,things may get worse, with reduced access to the shareable at Abuja, but maybe that’s what was needed as a wake-up call for Northern politicians and opinion leaders in general. So let the shareable dry. Necessity, they say, is the mother of inventions/creativity.

Maybe, with emotions still running high, it was time to rave up work on Plan B; a holistic, binding, and workable Regional Transformation agenda for the whole North. Access to “cheap” Abuja funds has engendered dependency syndrome among many states in the region. Some forgot that the dependency phenomenon at times carry an expiry date. The ongoing tax reform could just be one of those times and also a harbinger of more difficult and troubling times to come. The North needs to start looking inward as it goes for equity at the center. No nation and indeed society gets ahead with developmental strategy that is largely based on palliative and political patronage. Or by getting people fitted into the life of deprivations due to dwindling volumes of the shareable. The approach should be jettisoned or even killed sooner A parable by Paul Simos, titled “Kill the Cow” may underscore this seemingly harsh inclination. And, not to reduce its full essence, the parable is hereby reproduced in verbatim.

Kill The Cow

A family lives on the outskirts of a small village on a plot of land. The family owned one cow. Each day, they lived on the milk of the cow. If there is little milk, they eat little. If there is lots of milk, they eat well. The life of the mother, the father, and the children depend on the cow.

One autumn, a lone traveller stops at the village. He is hungry. The family shared their milk. The traveller is grateful.

The traveller wishes to return the favour and help the family. He doesn’t know how to help the family. He hears that there is a wise man in the village. He walks over to the house of the wise man.

“I was hungry, and the family fed me. I would like to help them. How can I help this family?”

“The wise man said, “Kill the Cow. “

The traveller was nervous following such strange advice, but the reputation of the wise man was such that he went ahead and killed the cow.

A year later, the traveller happened to pass again through the village. He noticed new shops and a thriving market. He saw a new hotel that provided food to travellers who came for the market.

The traveller entered the hotel. Behind the bar, he found the eldest son of the family of the cow. The man was standing tall, smiling, and happy. The traveller greeted him and asked, “What happened?”

“We lost our cow. There was no milk.we had to go out and do something to eat. We set up a small market, and it grew. We set up this hotel, and it is growing. Without the milk from our cow, we had to try new things.”

Silently to himself, the traveller reflected on the power of the wise man’s words.

“Kill the cow.”

A Question Of Governance, Not Opportunities

The North may need to have its cow (VAT, FAAC, etc) killed before it can “try new things” within the context of its extensive potentials. It would however take good governance and accountability, which has been in short supply for decades, to get things turned around in most of the 19 states in the North.

1.Adamawa state warehouses one of best lands for both arable and livestock farming. The soil is rich and water in the Benue river last all year round in parts. The presence of the Nigeria’s premier sugar company, the Savannah Sugar Company, the Sebore Farms owned by former governor, Admiral Nyako (rtd) and the Ngurore Cotton Farms are testaments of Adamawa’s agricultural prowess. The Sebore Farm remains one of the earliest and foremost large scale private agricultural initiatives in Nigeria.

Adamawa, too, has a long contiguous border with the Republic of Cameroon where livestock activities thrive very well. Cross border trade between the two neighbours through Mubi, Marwa, etc, has been enormous for decades. After all, the present Adamawa Emirate border extends to parts of Northern Cameroon. The Lamido of Adamawa remains the paramount traditional leader of both sections. Cross border trade if streamlined can be a game changer for Adamawa state economy. It will however need a holistic strategy, backed a generous political will to this laudable goal.

2.Taraba state* can compete for the title of being “nature’s gift to the world” at least the Nigerian world, in view of its awe inspiring climatic and topographical contrasts, making it conducive for a wide range of economic activities. For instance, Taraba’s climate is almost temperate on the Mambila plateau and hot and humid in the low land areeas. The famous Highland Tea brand. The Mambil Plateau also boasts of cultivating crops like apple and cherry thrive very well.

The topography and geomorphology also support hydro-powered economic activities, including electricity generation, irrigation farming, and dairy production, on industrial levels. The corruption ridden Mambila Power Project initiated by the Federal Government is located in Taraba State.

The area of Taraba bordering Benue state is a prime land for the cultivation of yam. The availability of abundant war and pastures make state highly conclusive for livestock rearing. Infact the state’s livestock base is capable of supporting and large scale daily industry that can be a huge revenue earner. The underbelly of the Taraba highlands are equally loaded with a wide range of solid minerals being currently appropriated by illegal miners. However, to leverage these opportunities, there will be need to create an enabling policy environment and the political will to drive the process.

3.Borno State shares borders with three countries, namely, Cameroon, Chad, and Niger. Before the Boko Haram crisis, multi-million dollar worth of businesses were transacted daily with towns like Kirawa, Pulka, Malam Fatori, and Gamboru-Ngala, being the epicentre. The famous Chad Basin agricultural programme provided the needed backstopping services to the state’s agricultural sector along with the Borno State Agricultural Programme (BOSAP).

During the state’s past periods of peace, it ranked high in the production of wheat, millet, melon, groundnuts, cotton, etc. The Yau Agricultural Project in Abadam, in the Lake Chad basin in the 50s. Baga was an international fisheries centre equipped and supported by government with a training school and boat building facilities in the 70s and 80s.There was a cotton ginary in Biu owned by British Cotton Ginary (BCG) Ltd and run by Nigeria Cotton Board. An oil mill for processing groundnut and cotton seeds operated in Maiduguri.

In addition, there was a vibrant and strong livestock sector producing dairy (Gidan Madara), as well as hides and skin and providing employent opportunities in allied businesses. Borno’s economy was really on upswing but no more.These and similar initiatives could be revived to make Borno great once more.

4.Yobe State has constituent parts that used to be famous for the cultivation of groundnut and grains. The Nguru Oil Mills readily comes to mind. There was also the Nguru meat processing facilities in the town where hundreds of cows were slaughtered daily and the meat refrigerated and containerised for distribution to other parts of the country by rail. Some more were packaged for export, to earn foreign exchange in the 60s.

Potiskum and Fika Emirates and parts of Gujba were renown grain zones. Ngalda and Potiskum grains and livestock markets still keep the legacy. The Bade flood plains can support modern fish farming and potash-based fertiliser production. Yobe State has widespread deposits gypsum across parts of the state. The deposits are yet to be harnessed properly as the operations are dominated by illegal miners, with the output usually consumed by the neighbouring Ashaka Cement and others.

With enormous sunshine has the potential to be a solar energy and also an ICT development hub. It’s a quite and laid back environment. An appropriate policy in that direction has the capacity to transform state in the near future.

5.Gombe State, then Gombe Emirate was the location of one of the earliest irrigation projects in the North, called the Khayasi Farms. Its operations were along the Dadin Kowa river where fruits, vegetables and tomato were cultivated on a mechanised scale all year round. A tomato puree and mango juice factory called Vegfru was established at neighbouring Jauro Garga Town in then Biu LGA to process and can the farm produce. The Gombe cotton ginary was also a famous one.The Khayasi Farms may have gone under but the water body is still there, being utilised for electric power generation.

Gombe along its boarder with Borno (Biu), to their east, lie uranium deposits. It also shares in the crude oil finds along its western border with Bauchi in the Kolmani basin. The state has an extensive gypsum deposits too that has been feeding the famous Ashaka Cement factory. These are huge opportunities waiting to be harnessed to make Gombe state more viable

6.Bauchi State is home to Yankari, one of the premier tourist destinations in Nigeria. In the past, it attracted both international and local visitors, thereby boosting the state’s economy. The state currently boasts of huge gypsum deposits around the Alkaleri and Kirfi axis. With the discovery of oil along its border with Gombe, oil-related businesses are bound crop up and thrive in the state as a whole.

The agricultural activities along the Hadeja-Jama’are River Basin catchments in Northern Bauchi has for long been a major contributor the state’s economic health. The discovery of oil could be an added impetus.
With the right attitude Bauchi’s economic future shall certainly be great.

7.The Plateau State holds the honour of being the largest producer of iron ore (Kuza). The rise to prominence of its capital, Jos, was to a large extent attributed to the minning activities on the Plateau. The potential is very much still there. Plateau’s near temperate weather has made the state conducive for potato, “acchcha,” apple, and fruits cultivation on a large scale. Aside agriculture, tourism has been a huge earner of resources for the state until insecurity undermined it. Plateau State’s solid mineral potentials along with agriculture and tourism should be able to launch launch launch it into reconing, economically, given the needed political will and an appropriate policy framework. The glory of the Nasco Industry, the JIB, the Jut Bag Industry, etc, may yet be back.

8.Narasawa State is endowed with huge varieties of solid mineral resources, just like its next-door cousin, Plateau. Thus, Nasarawa state goes by the mantra, the “Home of Solid Minerals.” Aside minerals, the state is blessed with huge arable land that also qualifies it to take place among the food baskets regions in the North. Crops like maize, yams, rice, and sugarcane are heavily cultivated. The Dangote Group recently showed interest in undertaking large-scale agricultural production in the state. The success of Nagari Farm owned by Adamu Abdullahi is further proof of Nasarawa’s agricultural potential. The state’s proximity to Abuja, the Federal Capital, has had a huge impact on its economy via border towns like Mararraba, Nyanya, Masaka, Kuru, Keffi, etc. It only requires a little more commitment and right policies to strengthen the state’s economy.

9.Benue State undoubtedly remains one of the major contributors to the nation’s food requirements. It is the largest producer of yams. Yam markets like Zaki Biam and Katsina-Ala are well known both nationally and internationally as yam centres. Having derived its name from the famous River Benue, the state enjoys a huge capacity for the cultivation of palms, cassue, oranges, mangoes, and bananas too. So huge is the outputs that are traded outside Nigeria especially in the West African region. The agricultural sector in Benue state actually gave rise and sustained the famous Taraku Oil Mills before it went under. The state equally owned and a success of the Benue Cement Company, Gboko, before being acquired by the Dangote Group. With the right mindset, things can get right again.

10.Kaduna State ordinarily should have no business with deprivations. It is the successor entity/centre to the defunct Northern Region. The state, aside being the most cosmopolitan, inherited a huge stock of industrial base, physical infrastructure, and top security installations/institutions like the NDA, Staff College Jaji, DIC, Air force Base, Police College, etc.

In the areas of manufacturing, over fifty per cent of the textiles industries in the North are based in Kaduna. The state is also home to the Peugeot Car Assembly plant, now acquired by Dangote. Neighboring, Zaria City, too, used to host the defunct Nigeria Electricity Meter Manufacturing Co Ltd.

The land supports a wide range of crops ranging from ginger in the South (Kafanchan, Zonkwa, Kaura, etc) and grains in the Saminaka, Soba, Zaria, Giwa, Birnin Gwari zones. Tubers like yams, cassava, and potatoes are also cultivated on huge scales across the state. With a little push, imagination, and right policies, the economy of the state can get the right shot on the arm.

11.Niger State, like Kaduna, is rich in agriculture. It also enjoys the economies of the River Nigeria that houses both Kainji and Shiroro hydroelectric power installations. The state’s mantra fact is the “Power State.” Revenue wise, the state enjoys some derivation through the HYPPADEC to mitigate environmental challenges.

Fisheries and shea butter oil production are feasible activities among the communities living along the rivers. The potentials here are enormous though largely untapped. The upland areas of Kontagora, Mokwa to Badeggi support cultivation of both food production and cash crops like maize, guinea corn, yams, and rice. Badeggi, in Niger state, is the headquarters of the National Cereals Research Institute (NCRI economy, too.

With places like Madalla, Suleja, and Tafa being part of the Abuja conurbations, economic activities in such areas like housing, transportation, hospitality and other micro businesses have the potential to boost the state’s economy tremendously. It will however require a well thought out policy, and resilience on the part of the government to achieve it. But its doable. Moreso with two Big Brothers watching over former heads of state, Babangida and Abdulsalami. The latter’s Maizube Farms should serve as a model for local livestock farmers.

12.Kogi, the “Conference” State is the meeting point of the two iconic rivers that traversed the centre of Nigeria. These are the Niger and Benue. The two met at Lokoja, the Kogi state capital, before journeying to the Niger Delta region and, eventually, to the Atlantic Ocean. This made the state rich in fisheries and also agriculture. Palm oil production is a huge business in Eastern Kogi.

Aside agriculture that state is also rich solid minerals. It has huge deposits of coal in the Ankpa zone, that is now being illegally mined. Kogi state is host to two largest ventures ever undertaken in the nation’s developmental history before the Dangote Refinery, in Lagos recently. These are the multi-million dollar Ajaokuta Steel Company and the Dangote Cement at Obajana. While the steel venture is owned by government, Aliko Dangote owns the cement company. There is the Okene handwoven cloth that can compete with the Ghana “kente” even in the international market. A more appropriate policy measure will leverage enormous economic transformation.

13.Kwara state has the benefit of being a meeting point of culture and tradition, just like neighbouring Kogi. The old Western Region has had had enormous impact on Kwara in terms of manpower development and entrepreneurial spirits. The Adedoyins and Folawiyos, (in the realm of business), the Saraki and AbdulRazak as technocrats and professionals provided impetus for Kwara State’s development and the capacity to tap its natural resources. Kwara is endowed enormous agricultural potential, with the existence of Bachita Sugar Company, Jebba Paper Mills, and Shonga Farm project as testaments. Given a little more political will, the socioeconomic landscape of Kwara would change for the better. A dose of prayer from powerful men of God, like Bishop Oyadepo, the General Overseer Oyadepo of the Living Faith Church International (Winners), and a “son of the soil” from Omu-Aran, would also serve as a spiritual reinforcement measure.

14.Kebbi State qualifies as a food basket and agricultural hub, too. The Kebbi rice and onions are well known across the country. Buhari’s Anchor Borrowers programme was launched in the state. The Alero zone in Kebbi State is the largest producer of onions in Nigeria and indeed West Africa. The Yawuri-Zuru axis is a maize and other grains production zone.The prowess of Kebbi State attracted the attention of the current government and the immediate past one to use the state as a model/pilot for the federal government’s rice initiative.

The towns of Jega and Kamba are also well-known commercial centres beyond Nigeria. The former arguably holds the record for housing the largest concentration of businessmen in the defunct Sokoto state, with the exception of Gusau. Kamba border market and Customs Point promotes huge volume of international trade with the republics of Benin and Niger. The cross border activities impact the local economy greatly. The Argungu fishing festival remains one of the premier tourist events and a revenue source, as well. A modicum of appropriate reform and and a modicum of political willpower shall make a huge difference in moving the state forward.

15.Zamfa State has been in the news for both good and bad reasons. Good that its gold deposit is attracting positive attention. Bad that it has, among other factors, brought about a debilitating security challenges. Gusau, the state capital, was a major commercial and industrial centre during the time of the Sardauna, Sir Ahmadu Bello, the premier of the old Northern Nigeria. The Nigerian Railways’ western-line passed through Gusau to Kaura Namoda, a development that stimulated enormous commercial activities in the area. It impacted the local economy for decades.

Such industries like the famous Zamfara textile, Gusau oil mills, and hides and skin made Zamfara tick. Currently, the state ranks among top producers of gold in Nigeria, the bulk of which is mined illegally. The security challenges in the state and the nearby regions are believed to be partially fuelled by the illegal mining activities. A little bid of streamlining and containment could go a long way in changing the economic fortunes of the state.

16.Sokoto state may be facing ecological challenges, but agriculture and livestock still thrive well well. The efficacy of the Rima Basin Development Authority is there to be replicated. The Basin itself is also believed to seat on crude oil. Huge deposits of gypsum are as well found in Sokoto state. The findings actually influenced the establishment of the first cement company in the North the defunct Sokoto Province, namely, the Cement Company of Northern Nigeria in the Kalambaina area.

Like its other fourteen counterparts in the North, Sokoto State has an extensive international borders with Niger Republic. Millions of naira worth of goods and services traded daily, across the said borders but with little accountability. A lot of income could be harnessed by government under a given right policy environments, are diverted systematically by private interests.

17.Katsina state state has two distinct ecological zones that support different types of agricultural activities. The Funtua zone is the wetter part where large-scale farming thrives. Cotton production was a major cash crop that led to the establishment of textiles and allied ventures, which impacted the local economy enormously. The central and northern tips of Katsina are semi-arids, where livestock farming is a big vocation.

A steel rolling mill was established in Katsina in the early 80s, though moribund now. Katsina state has long border with Niger Republic to the north, with Jibia and Mai’adua being the most vibrant crossings. The border economy contributes positively to the state’s economy but for the challenges of accountability.

Incidentally, Katsina is the only state in the North that produced two former heads of state and a second in command, namely, Buhari, Umaru ‘Yar Adua, and Shehu MusaYar Adua respectively. The Katsina College equally produced most of the early technocrats that ruled the North under the Sardauna. With these rich pedigree a good policy strategy could spur Katsina towards to socioeconomic glory in a short time.

18.Jigawa state shares a similar ecological outlook with Katsina and Kano. The state experiences enormous rains in the southern part around Birnin Kudu and a lesser spell in the dry Sahel zones of Kazaure, Maigatari, Hadeja, and Gumel. Livestock thrives well in the latter, while arable farming is a big business in the former . Two former governors of Jigawa, namely Saminu Turaki and Sule Lamido, experimented with three projects that have the potential to transform the economy of the state but somehow got bogged down. Two of them, rain harvesting and ICT development, seemed to be ahead of their time. They were initiated by Turaki. Lamido introduced early maturing varieties of date palm. Jigawa state today remains one of the biggest producers of date (dabino) in the country, among other agricultural outputs. With a more appropriate policy framework, the state can transform itself in the shortest possible time, especially with Kano State as a source of market next door.

19.Kano state remains the commercial capital of North. It was a historic centre of trade centuries ago and still keeps the flag flying. Kano commands 60 per cent of manufacturing activities in the heyday of the North. The famous Bagauda textiles, the Groundnut prymids, the Raleigh Bicycle Manufacturing, the Fiat Trucks Assembly plant, the Bottling companies etc underscore Kano’s industrial prowess. The southern part of the state, has been determined to house uranium deposits in commercial quantities. Kano may therefore soon become a solid minerals producing state aside being an industrial hub.

Kano’s irrigation system is a model for dry season farming across the entire North. This is facilitated by a network of dams and canals where the bulk of the nation’s tomato, onion and other vegetables are produced all year round. The Hadeja-Jama’are River Basin Authority leverages Kano’s agricultural strides and complemented by private investors like the Anadariya Farms in Bebeji.

The icing on Kano’s leading position as industrial and commercial power was the emergence of two of its sons as the first two richest people in Nigeria. Dangote and Abdulsamad of BUA are estimated to have a combined total wealth in excess of $20 billion! Though Kano might have lost some of its glory, in recent times, but with the right policy framework and environment, the state has the potential to be great again and also lead other sections of the region along, in industrialisation terms.

Business Can Not Continue As Usual

The above is a bird’s eye view of the 19 states that constitute the North – a region where 10 out of the 15 heads of state come from. A zone that houses over 120 people with unquantifiable potential in terms of both human and natural resources, that include 74% of the nation’s landmass with 70 million hectares of it arable, according to FAO The North is also home to 90% of Nigeria’s 156 million herds of cattle.

Paradoxically, the largest dairy farm in Nigeria is in Odeda Ogun State and many others in Oyo State, areas traditionally not known cattle farming. The Lagos State government, too, has established Lagos Food Security System and Logistics Hub for major food processing, storage, and distribution. Located at Ketu-Ereyun, Epe LGA is believed to be the largest in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The North couldn’t leverage on it’s comperative advantages effectively, thus reducing the region to a shadow of itself. And now found itself locked in an “existential” threats, posed by a possible reduction in FAAC allocations. Maybe it’s time to kill the cow.