About 25,000 rice farmers in Kano state are expected to benefit from farm inputs of N5 billion for the dry season farming in the state.

The Managing Director of the Bank of Agriculture (BOA), Alhaji Kabiru Adamu disclosed this while flagging-off the distribution of the items in Kura, headquarters of Kura local government area of the state.

The loan for the farm implement would be disbursed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)/Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN) Anchor Borrowers Programme.

He said the Federal Government had earmarked N25 billion for the loan to be disbursed to rice farmers nationwide during this dry season farming of which N5 billion would go to rice farmers in Kano state.

He said the disbursement of the farm equipment was part of effort to boost the agricultural sector in the country, especially the rice farming to complement the Federal Government’s agricultural transformation agenda.

He said the facility was expected to be repaid by the farmers within one year period so as to enable other farmers benefit and called on them to ensure prompt repayment of the loan.

Adamu disclosed that measures were being put in place to ensure mobile court is established in order to bring defaulters to book.

However, the Chairman of Rice Farmers Association in Kura, Malam Ado Sarkin-noma on behalf of his members called on the government to subsidise the loan.

“We were expecting that the loan of the farm equipment will be subsidised by the government to assist us during the farming season.

“The earlier arrangements for the loan were to be given in a subsidised rate with N60, 000 cash attached to it for payment of labour but that is not included, “Sarkin-noma said.

He explained that the loan package is made up of fertilizers, Water pumping machines, chemicals, Sprayer and Certified rice seeds.

In his remarks the state chairman of RIFAN, Alhaji Abubakar Aliyu said the loan was sourced by the association from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Bank of Agriculture (BOA). (NAN)