The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) says plans are underway to equip rice clusters with modern milling machines to improve the production of high-quality rice.
The Kano State Manager of the agency, Bashir Ja’afar-Aminu, disclosed this on Wednesday during a training programme organised for Kura Rice Cluster farmers in Kano.
The training, themed “Enhancing Clusters Competitiveness for Prosperity,” aimed to build the capacity of rice processors.
Ja’afar-Aminu explained that the intervention was necessary to help rice clusters transition from outdated machines to modern rice milling equipment.
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“We are going to support them with modern rice milling machines because we realised they are still using old ones,” he said.
He added that the support would also factor in solar-based energy solutions due to the current energy crisis in the country.
A participant from the Kura Rice Cluster, Dr Abdulrashid Ibrahim-Baba, commended the organisers for the training.
He said the programme was designed to sensitise cluster members on how to properly register, market, and process their products.
Dr Ibrahim-Baba also stressed the need for stronger collaboration and partnerships among the clusters to build prosperous and sustainable businesses.
