Abstract
The outbreak of Corona Virus Pandemic in Wuhan City in China and its eventual spread to other nations of the world including Nigeria has crippled the world economy including that of Nigeria which relied mainly on primary products. The unfortunate aspect of the pandemic is the fact that the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) has now diverted its scarce resources from the sector that served as the main stay of the economy to the health sector in an attempt to save life. The implication of this is the neglect of agricultural production at a very crucial period when pre and planting operations should be on-going. The consequential effect of this is shortage of essential food items in the market with rural women bearing the brunt. Currently in the country, price of essential staple food items has gone up astronomically as a result of the pandemic. In order to mitigate the effect of this pandemic, the paper suggests that rural women engaged in agriculture should be given access to micro loans via provision of financial and technical support to grassroots farmers/groups while new innovations and techniques such as farm mechanization, use of mini-planters, harvesters and other time-labour-saving equipment should be encouraged to serve as substitute to scarcity of farm labour. Keywords: COVID-19, Implications, Rural Women, Agricultural Products and Technology DOI: 10.7176/JESD/11-10-18 Publication date: May 31 st 2020
Highlights
In late December 2019, a novel coronavirus (COVID-19) was identified as the cause of a significant number of human cases of a respiratory disease in China
The first index case was reported in Nigeria in February, 2020 and as at 19th April, 2020, the figure of infected persons/confirmed cases has increased to 627 with the Federal Government of Nigeria shutting down Ogun state, Lagos state and Federal Capital Territory
Food Shortage: As a result of on-going pandemic ravaging the world, Nigeria inclusive, the number of available labour force for agriculture will reduce, national resources committed to agricultural development will fall and above all, the period which ought to have been devoted for pre-planting and planting operation has been used to restrict the movement of farmers, all these will reduce agricultural production which will lead to food shortage in the future
Summary
In late December 2019, a novel coronavirus (COVID-19) was identified as the cause of a significant number of human cases of a respiratory disease in China. Women earn less, save less, hold less secure jobs and are more likely to be employed in the informal sectors They have less access to social protections and are the majority of single-parent households. Disruption of Market Chain: The restrictions on the movement of goods and people have significant socio-economic repercussions on people's livelihoods, going beyond the direct impact on health, and affecting the most vulnerable groups While these restrictions are necessary to limit the spread of a disease, they often lead to disruption of market chains and trade of agricultural products, with significant potential impacts on the populations that depend on them for their livelihoods and their food and nutrition security. The restriction of movement has impeded farmers' access to markets, curbing their productive capacities and hindering them from selling their produce, especially perishable items
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