ASHENEWS reports that President Bola Tinubu on Monday flagged -off the Niger State Agricultural Mechanisation Revolution for Food Security emergency.
The president also commissioned the remodelled Domestic Terminal of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Airport, Minna.
According to the Niger state government, the special Agro-processing Free Zone consists of 3000 hectares of land.
1000 hectares is dedicated for greenhouses; 1000 for dairy and meat processing, and the other 1000 hectares for Agro-processing storage, aggregation, and other value chain development components.
Speaking shortly before the commission of the projects, the Niger state governor, Mohammed Bago said that the State Government has prioritized agricultural development as a catalyst for economic growth and poverty alleviation.
Bago said that his government had made significant investments in agricultural machinery and technology as part of efforts to advance the federal government’s aspiration toward food security in Nigeria.
“We are also attracting partnerships in support of our laudable programmes, for example, we just secured a 16 million dollar intervention for planting 19 million trees in our march towards one billion trees to be planted in Niger state for the much-needed environmental restoration carbon credit sequestration.
“To further bolster the lead role Niger State is playing in agriculture and contributing to the overall food security of Nigeria, we shall explore over 3 million of the 8.3 million hectares of arable land, large water bodies with a multitude of tributaries, 23 grazing reserves, and 94 forest reserves.
“Therefore, Niger State stands as a beacon of hope and promise in the realm of agriculture and our springboard to harvest our potentials in the Green Economy and associated gains.
“For us, agriculture is key to our commitment to addressing the challenges in critical sectors of our economy and we shall seize every opportunity for the attainment of growth and engender prosperity for the people of our beloved state and by extension our dear country, Nigeria,” he said.
President Bola Tinubu, in his address, said that the federal government has observed the readiness and commitment displayed by the Niger State government in piloting the agricultural revolution agenda of his government.
“It is now time for Nigeria to embrace the challenge and make an opportunity.”
Tinubu who acknowledged the commitment displayed by the Niger state government to the food security initiative said that Nigeria can use the economic opportunity to mitigate and correct the problems of violence, attacks, and cattle rustling among other issues.
Tinubu stressed the need for stakeholders to reorient Nigeria’s farming population.
“For Nigeria, to change the narrative and make it an economic opportunity, we must care for people, and reorient our farming population including on livestock programs.
“If we reorient them and make provision for cattle rearing, you are the governors who must provide the land.
“I as the president, am committed to giving you in two to three weeks’ time, a comprehensive programme that will solve this problem.”
On the current economic challenges, Tinubu encouraged state governments to commence the payment of wage awards to their workers in a bid to reduce the hardship faced by citizens in the country.
He assured that the federal government was working to strengthen the country’s social security programmes to reduce the hardship faced by people.
“The social security programmes for the elderly and vulnerable will commence, we are fine-tuning all of that, we are going to relieve people of hunger and if all of you have been paying the wages award, pending the determination of new salary wage, the wage award plus whatever they are taking now will relieve the public.
“The mechanism is the fact that it will not be inflationary. It has a dampening effect on the masses.”
On his part, the Minister for Agriculture, Abubakar Kyari described the flag-off and the project itself as signifying the restoration of hope to farmers in the state.
He noted that the federal government had made various reform-centered projects and partnerships with various governments as well as engagements with multi-national partners.
He described mechanization as a pivotal part of the government’s agenda.
This he said will make agriculture attractive to the country’s teeming youth and help Nigeria fill in the gap of the teeming aging population.
He added that the initiative would help Nigeria fill the massive mechanization gap, as Nigeria is falling short of the international standard on the farmland-tractors ratio.
“We at the federal ministry of agriculture have in consonance with Mr. President’s directive to all MDAs and cabinet members to collaborate and more consistently canvass partnerships and alliances with state governments.
“This occasion further underscores Mr. President’s deep desire to leave behind an endearing legacy of a Nigeria where no citizen goes to bed on an empty stomach.”
This online platform reports that the event had in attendance the governors of Lagos, Benue, Kogi, and Kwara states.
In their respective remarks, the governors of Lagos and Benue lauded the Niger state governor for his efforts, assuring that the same would be replicated in their states.
Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo Olu assured of his government’s commitment to the partnership with the state.
“We believe that we are in a conversation and in ensuring that your vision to producing the required food security in the country is on track.”
The machinery commissioned included 100 units of case tractors, 50 units of combined harvesters, 1,000 Solar Irrigation Water Pumps,60 units of Pivot Irrigation Systems , 20,000 tons of NPK/UREA fertiliser’s, 10,000 litres of herbicides as well as 10,000 litres of pesticides.
