ASHENEWS reports that the Niger Foods Security Systems and Logistics Limited has revealed how some farmers in Niger state had sold over 100 solar pumps worth N400 million during the last dry season farming.
The Executive Director of Niger Foods, Patience Koku disclosed this when speaking with stakeholders during the townhall meeting on preparation of the 2024/2025 dry season farming across the state held at Gawu Babangida in Gurara local government area.
According to her, Niger foods had installed the solar pumps in the various farms but the beneficiary farmers removed and sold them, adding that the farmers were currently nowhere to be found.
Koku further disclosed that in another instance, they discovered that one Bank Verification Number (BVN) was used to register for over 300 farmers.
She further said that these and many other challenges experienced during the last farming season, have given rise to rigorous processes and verification for the initiatives being implemented so that only real farmers would be captured.
“Those that are blaming Niger Foods for this rigorous check should know that we bought over 100 solar pumps but the people who got them sold and disappeared. We are talking of over N400 million. They removed them from their farms and sold them. We cannot locate them now.
“We have pictures to show you. That is why we are doing these processes, checking and verification. Several farmers have failed us in the past. Now, we are saying whoever knows he is not interested should not join.
“That is why we are also asking for BVN because we realize that people register with the same BVN and BVN will show us a lot of red flags to know if we should include you in the initiative or not.”
The Executive Director said that the organization and state government have decided that it would no longer deal with middlemen to help get farmers because the groups are not the representatives of the farmers at the grassroots.
“We have experienced a lot of dishonesty in some farmers and middlemen. We have realized that we are not getting to the real farmers at the grassroots. That is why we have decided that we would no longer be dealing with any go-betweens. We realize that they are not really representatives of the farmers.
“This townhall meeting is one of the ways we are trying to address the challenges we faced the previous time. We are going to the grassroots, meeting local government chairmen, traditional leaders and party representatives at the grassroot to link us to the real farmers because if you give the real farmers the inputs, they will use it judiciously because they know that it would bring result to their farms.”
The Commissioner of Agriculture, Musa Bawa Bosso said that the townhall meeting is to implement the determination of the government to eradicate poverty and ensure food sufficiency.
He said that the government is holding the townhall meeting to hear the complaints and challenges of the farmers at the grassroots and come up with a strategy that would enable the farmers access the various agricultural interventions of the state government.
Bosso disclosed that the government is ready to give grains, inputs and machinery as loan to the farmers which would be paid back after they have harvested their crops calling on all farmers to key into the initiative to boost their productivity and eradicate food shortage in Niger state and Nigeria in general.
The townhall meeting which was held in Gurara, Bida and Wushishi to cover for the three senatorial zones of the state had in attendance traditional leaders, the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), religious leaders, leaders of farmers groups, the local government Chairmen, secretaries and Directors of Agriculture.
Some of the attendees applauded the government initiative as they said they now know that the government is serious in carrying the farmers at the grassroots along in his agricultural policies and programmes.
