Crowdfarming and the pandemic: What went wrong?

“It was a disaster because the [chickens] were ready to be sold, but they could not be moved to the market. We lost almost all the [chickens] on the farms”.

These words sum up the experience of farmers across Nigeria in the wake of COVID-19. For Mr Ayodeji, owner of Ipetu Farms in Osun state, things went from bad to worse this year. 

It is well known that Nigeria does not suffer from external shocks like hurricanes or earthquakes. But economic realities like the one Mr Ayodeji found himself in, sometimes feel exactly like a disaster. 

The damage caused by the pandemic on the Nigerian agriculture value chain was similar to an earthquake. Just like how structures crumble when earthquakes hit, so too did companies in Nigeria come crashing down this year.

In the wake of the pandemic, businesses have ceased operations, employees have been laid off, and some of