Naira Devaluation Triggers Farm Labour Shortages as Foreign Workers Exit Nigeria
Story, written by Peterson September 10,2025
Nigeria’s agricultural sector is grappling with a worsening labour crisis as the naira’s slump against the CFA franc drives away foreign farm workers from neighbouring West African countries.
For decades, labourers from Benin Republic, Togo, and other francophone nations filled the gap left by Nigerians’ reluctance to take up strenuous farm jobs. But since the naira lost more than half its value in 2023, many foreign workers have returned home, leaving Nigerian farmers struggling to find replacements.
Industry experts warn that the situation is pushing up the cost of farm labour. According to Abiodun Olorundero, managing partner at Prasinos Farms, average monthly wages for farmhands have jumped from ₦25,000 in 2023 to over ₦65,000 in 2025 — a 160 percent increase.
Much of Nigeria’s farmland still depends on manual labour, with limited mechanisation. With the average farmer aged 60 and younger Nigerians abandoning rural work for city jobs, analysts fear the labour gap could deepen the country’s food insecurity crisis.
“The naira’s fall against the CFA franc has stripped away the incentive for foreign workers to cross the border,” said Ibrahim Kabiru, president of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN). “Farmers are now unable to pay, and even feeding labourers has become unaffordable.”
Experts also caution that the shortage is not just driving up wages but reducing efficiency on farms, resulting in lower food output and higher consumer prices.
Agriculture advocates insist that unless Nigeria fast-tracks mechanisation and supports farmers financially, the nation’s quest for food self-sufficiency will remain under serious threat.
